


Costa Rica

by kwillow19



Series: Costa Rica [1]
Category: Amar a Muerte (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe- No Supernatural, F/F, Juliantina, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-28
Updated: 2019-07-16
Packaged: 2019-12-25 19:30:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 39,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18267914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kwillow19/pseuds/kwillow19
Summary: In search of a better life, Juliana and her mother leave their Texas home to live and work in a small resort town in Costa Rica. Everything is going smoothly for the pair until the family of a well-known Mexican media mogul arrives for an extended stay.





	1. Chapter 1

The glare of the bright sun reflecting off the ocean hits Juliana’s eyes as soon as she looks up from the table she was diligently wiping clean. She neatly refolds the dish rag in her hands and lets it unceremoniously drop back down onto the table to continue her task. It was a hot one today. The usually dependable salty breeze seemed non-existent, and it was elevating the heat and humidity that clung to the shores of the seaside town. The waves were uniquely calm. Another sign of the lack of wind. Juliana had grown up near the Gulf Coast and was very familiar with the turquoise, tranquil waves that lapped lazily at that shore. She loved the familiarity of the ocean here, but the Pacific was usually more turbulent and powerful as it churned against the sand.

Juliana let out a small sigh, biting lightly at the tip of her thumb. She was content here, for the most part. It was a beautiful place to live, and it had the extra perk of her mom and her not being under constant threat. They were free from her father’s poor choices and dangerous behavior. The very things that had driven them away from their hometown, without him in tow. To be honest, she wasn’t terribly heartbroken to leave. But she had hoped she would be headed in a more significant direction than just _anywhere safe_. She knew this was temporary, but the longer they stayed the more it felt like this was her life for the foreseeable future.

Her shift at the main resort restaurant was just wrapping up. Juliana worked daily breakfast and lunch hours. It meant a relatively early start to her day and fortunately an early end, as well. She lifted her hand, motioning a polite goodbye to the shift manager and other staff that were taking her place as she slipped out the back employee exit.

She made her way to the staff locker room just down the hill. The restaurant, _Postrecito_ , sat at the top of a small cliff that extended out into the ocean. She turned her head to look back at the large wooden pillars that supported the structure and the white umbrellas that adorned the tables on the deck. It was, all-in-all, not a bad place to spend the day. But the beads of sweat that ran down her back and persistent ache in the soles of her feet made her happy that her workday had come to a close.

After a brief shower and a change into her normal clothes, Juliana felt a bit more refreshed and ready to face the heat again. She dropped the white polo shirt and knee length skirt that made up her staff uniform off at the employee laundry for cleaning. She then gathered the rest of her things and placed them in a small handwoven bag she had recently purchased at a local market. Now, her primary objective was to quickly pass through the busy winding resort streets to get to the well air conditioned staff casitas that sat at the far side of the property.

Juliana was looking forward to a quiet afternoon alone where she could focus on her drawings and maybe enjoy a light dinner in front of the tv. The sound of a ridiculous telenovela playing in the background while she sketched silently on her notepad or worked at the levers of a sewing machine were also things that brought that comfort of familiarity to her new life. In Texas, her mom would have been there though. Here, Lupe and her were on opposite schedules. Her mother would return home from work just a few hours before she was up and out the door in the morning. They did have the same day off once a week, so they made a point of spending it together.

Juliana was making good time on her walk to her house having avoided most of the foot traffic by taking the back routes. She was about half way to her destination when she heard the commotion. This area was typically a little more quiet, as it was further away from the bustle of the town plaza. It was the nicest area on the property. Large, colorful private beach homes lined the street. They had clearly been constructed in an attempt to best match the no doubt opulent full-time residences of those that rented them. 

“Well, just leave me alone then!”

A woman’s voice rang out, as Juliana rounds the corner. She spots a couple standing in a courtyard in front of one of the houses.

“Valentina, why do you have to be like this?” A young man shouts back at her. “I came all the way here to be with you, and you just want to mope around.”

“We just got here,” the woman replies. “I’m tired from traveling. I just need a moment before you and Sergio drag me off to watch you get trashed. Which, by the way, I’m so bored with.”

“A bar is boring, huh?” he asks rhetorically. “I’m the boring one because I want to have fun. On my vacation!”

“Well, If I’m so boring then why don’t you just find yourself another novia!”

The man rushes towards her with his hands balled up in rage. He leans in and states through his teeth, “It makes me angry when you’re like this!”

“Don’t touch me,” she says, as she retreats away from him.

“Call me when you chill out, Valentina.”

“Well, I won’t call you. Ok?” she replies to the young man’s back as he storms off.

Juliana stands there frozen as she watches the other woman pace back and forth for a moment clearly distressed. The woman runs a hand up through her hair and then takes off in the opposite direction as her boyfriend.

_Rich people._ Juliana thought to herself with a roll of her eyes as she shook off the encounter. Not having the best history with violence, screaming and displays of rage always raised her hackles. She wasn’t one to shy away from an argument or confrontation, but watching the way it affected others made her feel sympathetic towards the woman. _Besides, that guy seemed like kind of a dick._

Juliana didn’t make it much further down the street before she found Valentina again sitting alone in the shadows on the steps of another rental home. Her scrunched brow and puffy eyes providing evidence of the emotional outburst she just went through. Juliana watches the woman raise a small silver flask to her lips. She pouts at the thought and finds herself moving towards her. She hesitates for a moment, considering the cost of prolonging her time in the heat and how this was really none of her business.

“You ok?” Juliana asks before she can stop herself. When she receives no answer, she questions, “do you need anything?”

“To be alone,” the woman responds.

“Perdón,” Juliana replies. “It’s just that I saw you arguing with your boyfriend and…” _This really was none of her business._ “But, yeah, you’re right.” Juliana turns to step away.

Valentina closes her eyes in frustration with herself. She shouldn’t be rude to this person that was clearly just trying to be kind.

“Wait,” she calls out. “I think I’m fine. Thank you for asking.”

Juliana halted her exit and turns slowly back around. She sits down next to Valentina on the steps, watching the other woman wipe at the tears in her eyes.

“What is it then?” Juliana asks.

“I just don’t understand guys,” Valentina says, sounding exasperated. “I don’t know. I think men really are from another planet or something.”

Juliana pauses at the comment. She scans the other woman’s face, as Valentina stares into the distance and then looks down dejectedly. Juliana certainly didn’t disagree with the other woman’s statement, but she always found distraction was the better option when it came to a topic that really had no resolution.

“I like your outfit. It’s very pretty,” Juliana offers, motioning towards Valentina.

The distraction seems to work, as now the woman appears to be focusing on what Juliana said as she glances down at herself. Valentina remembers being happy earlier this morning when she selected her clothes, but seeing that it was a travel day she hadn’t picked her finest outfit. She shyly looks over at Juliana, running her eyes from head to toe, in an attempt to find a way to return the compliment.

“Oh no. Don’t even look at me!” Juliana responds with a light laugh. She feels a little self conscious in her simple jean shorts and red t-shirt. “I don’t have anything like that.”

“Well, I think you have…” Valentina starts. “Plenty of style.”

They both laugh at the forced observation. Valentina’s eyes are still sad, but she seems to appreciate the small reprieve from her thoughts.

“Well,” Juliana says with a smile. “Now, I know you’re an excellent liar.”

Valentina stares at the smirk on Juliana’s face and responds with one in return. She realizes she hadn’t really looked the other woman directly in the eyes until this moment. She’s pleased with what she finds there when she finally does. Juliana’s warm brown eyes have a sincerity in them that feels very rare to Valentina, especially these days.

“Valentina,” she introduces herself, as she extends her hand.

“Juliana,” the other woman responds, as she accepts it.

~~~

Juliana maintains her grip on Valentina’s hand and stands up from the steps. The other woman is staring, a little confused about what’s next. Juliana lifts an eyebrow in question and tugs at Valentina’s hand to join her standing. When Valentina finally acquiesces, she gets up begrudgingly using Juliana’s strength to help pull her to her feet.

“Come on,” Juliana says softly.

A few steps in to their walk, they release each other’s hands. Valentina follows Juliana closely. They veer off onto what appears to be a fairly unbeaten private path that leads down towards the water. As they get closer, Juliana stops to take off her sandals. Valentina watches her for a moment and then does the same.

The women walk silently side by side down at the edge of the water. They both are keeping themselves distracted with the intermittent swells of shallow water barely covering their feet as they stride parallel to the surf.

“Are you happy?” Valentina asks suddenly, staring down while she swings her shoes lightly in her hands.

“No sé,” Juliana responds, looking down, as well. “I mean, it’s all relative I guess. I think I’m happier now, but who even knows what that really is supposed to feel like. What’s happy enough?”

“I have no clue,” Valentina answers. “Or maybe I just don’t like people lately.”

“Oh, well then,” Juliana responds quickly, playfully stepping away from Valentina in a faux dramatic exit.

Valentina laughs at her antics and grabs Juliana’s arm bringing them back closer together.

“No, no. I didn’t mean you. In fact, I actually like you a lot.”

Juliana looks over at Valentina with a skeptical expression. She holds her gaze and then they both laugh at the silliness of the moment.

“It’s just that,” Valentina continues. “I feel like most people aren’t real. They prefer when you lie to their faces instead of saying what you really think.” Valentina takes a moment to consider her statement. “It’s like my friends. They’re supposedly tired of me because I’m depressed.”

“Well, that’s not very nice of your buddies.”

Valentina takes a deep breath filling her lungs with the ocean air. She pauses for a moment and then shakes her head. “You know, I’m really sorry,” she apologizes. She places her hand on Juliana’s forearm, turning them to face each other.

“For what?” Juliana asks, confused by the abrupt halt.

“This is your vacation and I’m droning on about my problems.”

Juliana averts her gaze at Valentina’s words. She wasn’t trying to be purposefully deceptive about why she was here, but it was nice just having a normal moment with someone. A moment that didn’t involve her refilling their drink while they made polite conversation. It was nice feeling like she had a friend.

“Look. You’re not ruining anything,” she responded. “When I saw you crying, there was no way I could leave you.”

Valentina fights the smile that threatens her lips. She bites down lightly on her bottom one as she scans Juliana’s face for a tell. She couldn’t find anything but a genuine kindness in her eyes. Her hand that still rested on Juliana’s forearm grips it tighter in response. The moment seems to expand between them.

The jarring chirp of a text arriving to her phone breaks the staring contest. Valentina looks down and frowns at the message.

“Everything ok?” Juliana asks.

“Yeah… yeah. It’s fine.” Valentina quickly types a short response and then shoves the phone in her back pocket. “I’m sorry. I have to go.”

Valentina moves forward, kissing Juliana on the cheek.

“I’ll see you.”

Before Juliana can form a response, Valentina is off. She watches the other woman stride briskly up the beach towards the houses leaving a speechless Juliana in her wake.

Juliana lightly kicks at the sand that had gathered on her toes while she was standing in the surf talking to Valentina. She then turns around and starts her trek to the casitas. She continues her path towards her original destination, before she was so pleasantly knocked off course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've got good news and bad news. The good news is at the end of this week I'm actually going to a resort in Costa Rica for vacation. It was partly the inspiration for this story. That, and the delightful stock photography Juliana shared with her mother on the show to convince her that Costa Rica was a good place to go. Haha. The bad news is I won't have the next update ready until I return at the end of next week. But I promise to return with lots of inspiration for scenery!
> 
> Also, thanks so much for all the love on [Feel My Energy](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18113252)! I'm happy to have more to share :)


	2. Chapter 2

“We’ll have a round of Chelitas for the table. Yes?”

Sergio laughs at Lucho’s question, and then lightly shoves him when he realizes he’s the only one that had that reaction. Valentina and her sister, Eva, lower their menus at the same time to look at Lucho disapprovingly. Lucho shrugs his shoulders.

“It’s a breakfast drink.”

“Lucho.” His name rolls from Eva’s tongue in a chastising tone. “It’s actually lunch.”

“Perfecto! So we can start with shots.”

Valentina sinks further into her chair at the comment. She places her menu down on the table in front of her and picks up her phone. She’d do anything to just disappear right now. This “vacation” was a joke. She glances down at the end of the table where her father was supposed to be seated. But, of course, two minutes into their lunch he had to leave for an important business call.

Typically, after the level of fight her and Lucho had yesterday, she could ignore his texts and calls for a few days. He would eventually show up at the house around day three with flowers and empty apologies. Then they would get drunk, watch a movie and pretend nothing had happened. But here, there was no reprieve. She was forced to be in the same space as him, and it was suffocating. She thumbed through her phone hoping to find anything that would serve both as a distraction and an excuse to not have to make eye contact with him across the table.

“Vale, sit up,” Eva says quietly, as she nudges her.

Valentina pulls herself into a more upright position. She looks at her brother sitting on the other side of Eva. Guille smirks at her and then nods in sympathy. Valentina turns her attention back to her phone. Being here felt pointless.

“Look. Eva, I don’t know if I’m in the mood to eat.”

“Finally!” Lucho calls out interrupting her. “We’ve been waiting forever to order.”

Valentina rolls her eyes, as Lucho continues to be his charming self to the waitress that had just arrived.

“You need to eat,” Eva whispers to her.

“This is stupid. Dad can’t even stick around for one meal. And, I’m pretty sure I’m going to strangle Lucho if I have to spend another second with him.”

Eva takes a deep breath and then purses her lips. “Be that may, you’re still an adult and you need to start acting like one instead of pouting like a toddler.”

The words ‘you’re not the boss of me’ rolls through Valentina’s head. But she halts herself from the saying them out loud as it wouldn’t do much for proving her case of being mature enough to handle this situation. And, maybe, Eva really did feel like she needed to be the boss of them. The loss of their mother at a young age and her father’s lack of participation in their life here lately certainly left an opening.

“And, what can I get you?”

A familiar voice interrupts Valentina’s thoughts. She looks up to see beautiful brown eyes staring back at her once again. For a moment, she is frozen.

“Hey,” Valentina utters in almost a whisper.

“Hey,” Juliana responds with a smile. “How are you?”

“Better.”

For whatever reason, Valentina does suddenly feel better. She smiles back at Juliana and allows herself to indulge in how the presence of the other woman seems to make everything feel so much lighter.

Juliana reaches up to rub the back of her neck. She glances at the rest of the table noticing that they seem to be distracted with their own conversations. She decides its probably not the best moment for a social call, so she shifts back into work mode. She places her pen against the small piece of paper cradled in her other hand.

“What would you like?”

Valentina shakes her head lightly, almost comically so, to focus herself. An expression of realization dances across her face. Juliana hadn’t manifested out of the ethereal to make her feel better. Juliana was there to take her order. _Oh._ Valentina blushes, a little embarrassed that it took her a minute to understand.

“Umm,” Valentina stalls, as she picks the menu back up scanning it quickly. “I know it’s not on here, but could I get chilaquiles? And, a tomato juice please.”

Juliana offers a closed mouth smile as she scribbles the order on her paper. “Usually, the chef doesn’t take requests not on the menu, but I’ll see what I can do.” She winks at Valentina and then moves a couple steps past her to take Eva and Guille’s orders.

After that, it’s all business.

Valentina does her best not to stare at Juliana every time she visits the table to deliver food or refill drinks. But she’s failing miserably. Juliana’s hair is tied back in a high pony tail, and Valentina can’t help but admire the way it highlights her sculpted jaw line and bright smile. She watches how skillfully Juliana dodges Sergio’s weak advances and how politely she responds to Lucho’s dismissive behavior. She feels a little foolish that yesterday she had assumed Juliana was a guest at the resort. Then, she panics at the idea that the other woman may have only been nice to her because it was her job. Even in the face of these emerging fears, Valentina had felt that their connection was a genuine one. Even though, now it seemed like it was destined to be short lived.

Juliana had tried her best to stay focused on the task at hand, but she couldn’t help but notice the bright blue eyes that followed her every time she got in close proximity to their table. She wasn’t sure how the revelation of her role here had changed things. She also wasn’t sure if that was even a reasonable thought. Her and Valentina had only had one short interaction. Although, it meant a lot to her to even have that small conversation she wasn’t sure if it was significant in any way to the other woman.

So many people had come and gone from the resort in the mere six months her mother and her had been here. There were plenty of pleasant, smiling faces and ones where their eyes never quite connected with her. Some people regarded her as less interesting than the occasional iguanas they spotted from their tables. And, to be honest, part of her really liked that. She reveled in the anonymity this job brought her. She could waltz in and out of conversations she would have never been privy to otherwise. She could be polite to advances of strangers knowing that in a matter of days they would never see each other again. There was a freedom in knowing all her interactions had no long term consequences. For the first time, she felt a little sad at the idea that soon that would be all Valentina was to her.

Juliana rolls her shoulders as she stands back upright from the position she was in wiping down a recently vacated table. Thankfully, the breeze had returned today and was little more the normal afternoon heat than the stagnant heat of yesterday. She pushes back a few strands of hair that had fallen into her face.

"Señorita."

Juliana jumps, startled by the words spoken closely in her ear. She clutches the dish rag to her chest and turns to see Valentina standing right behind her. A playful smirk on Valentina’s face.

“Ay,” Juliana says, as she releases a breath. “Did you need something?”

Valentina simply shakes her head ‘no’ and continues to smile openly at her. Juliana relaxes as she stares at the other woman.

“I just wanted to say thank you for yesterday,” Valentina offers.

Juliana sees the genuine appreciation in her eyes and nods with a smile.

“And, I probably should thank you for today, too. The chilaquiles were very good.”

Juliana watches the other woman for a moment and then responds teasingly. “Excellent. Because I had to call in a favor for that one.”

Valentina’s eyes sparkle in a conspiratory type way. She leans closer and opens her mouth to reply when suddenly she feels a pair of arms around her midsection.

“Vale! Eva’s paying the bill, so let’s go.”

Lucho swings her away from Juliana. Valentina manages to untangle herself from his embrace for a moment. And, then, one of his arms wraps around her waist again. Valentina looks back over her shoulder at the other woman apologetically as Lucho leads her away.

Juliana turns to the now empty table that Valentina’s family left behind. She eyes the dishes, her brain running on auto pilot assessing how she wants to stack the mess in front of her to take back to the kitchen. She suddenly feels like her next day off can’t get here soon enough.

~~~

Valentina lowers herself down in what turns out to be a very ungraceful plop onto the sand. She wasn’t sure how long she had been walking or where she even was really. She just knew in one hand she held an empty flask and, in the other, a cell phone with a completely drained battery. She lets out a long sigh leaning back against a piece of driftwood that she had identified as _the perfect place_ to take a nap. The early morning sun was beginning to rise over the eastern hills that surround the resort. She had been up all night, again.

Last night, she couldn’t stick around the house though. She wanted to feel the sand beneath her feet and the salty water on her skin. She wanted to be anywhere but with her friends and family. But, in her state, she had gotten all turned around and wasn’t able to make it down to the oceanside as quickly as she hoped. Now, as she feels herself start to sober, she just wants to sleep. The repetitive sound of the ocean waves against the shore was almost enough to lull her into dream land. But before she could slip away, something moving in the water caught her attention.

The object was mixed up in the frothy shore break, but seemed to move of its own accord. Then it stands up fully, becoming decidedly more human in Valentina’s blurred vision. As it approaches, it becomes decidedly female, and then becomes decidedly familiar.

Valentina watches Juliana emerge from the water. The other woman wipes her wet hair back from her face as she slowly makes her way through the swells of the retreating surf. As Juliana begins her trek up the beach towards her, Valentina felt powerless to do anything but stare. How did this creature keep showing up whenever she needs her? It seems too odd to be coincidental. Yet, when Juliana smiles at her, she feels like it is the most normal, predictable occurrence in the world.

Juliana stops in front of the other woman, standing with her hands on her hips. Valentina takes a quick second to admire the way the drops of ocean water rolled from Juliana’s toned skin onto the sand beneath her.

“Are you stalking me?” Valentina asks, looking up at Juliana curiously.

The other woman raises her eyebrows with a smile and lets out a light huff.

“You’re sitting on my shoes.”

“Oh,” Valentina responds quickly. She glances down and notices the edge of Juliana’s sandal sticking out from underneath her. She places the items in her hands down and moves herself over. Valentina plucks the sandals up from the ground and raises them towards Juliana.

“Hold that thought,” Juliana says, as she steps away for a second.

She moves behind Valentina to collect her bag. It’s hanging from the branches of one of the nearby trees that lined the forrest near the shore. Juliana pulls out a towel and wipes her face. She then wraps it around her waist and comes back to sit down next to Valentina.

“So it turns out that you’re actually a mermaid.”

Juliana laughs at Valentina’s comment. She looks down at her feet and wiggles her toes.

“I think these would say otherwise.”

“Verdad,” Valentina responds. “Pero, you’re out here swimming at night. Then you emerge from the water looking like some kind of goddess. What am I supposed to think?”

Juliana watches Valentina, taking in her words and blurry eyes to better understand her state of mind. She feels that same pull as when she first spotted her fighting with Lucho. She wants to ask if Valentina’s drunk, but she already knows the answer. That reality makes Juliana want to draw Valentina into her arms and tell her she doesn’t have to do this. But she knows its not her place.

“Technically, its morning,” Juliana says. “I come out here before work to swim. It’s so quiet first thing and no one else is ever in the water.”

“What time is it?” Valentina asks.

“It’s just a little after 5,” Juliana states. “I think the real question is what are you doing out here?”

“I wanted to walk on the sand. But I got lost and then _this_.” Valentina has a slight pout as she raises her dead cell phone in her hands.

Juliana offers her own pout in response to Valentina’s predicament. She tucks a strand of Valentina’s hair behind her ear, and then wraps an arm around Valentina’s shoulders pulling her in. Valentina complies easily, resting her head in the crook of Juliana’s neck.

They sit like that for a moment, watching the sky lighten above the water. Juliana hears Valentina’s breaths even out and she worries that the other woman has fallen asleep. She rubs Valentina’s arm and feels her move in response indicating that she’s still awake.

“I hate to break up your Little Mermaid fantasies, but I’ve got to get to work.”

Valentina sits up in her embrace and rolls her eyes at her. Juliana lightly laughs and then does her best to help them both to their feet.

Juliana pulls a pair of shorts and a t-shirt from her bag and puts them on over her bathing suit. They slowly make their way across the sand. Valentina grips onto Juliana’s arm not ready to break contact and also needing a little help to stabilize herself. Once they get to the paved street, Juliana drops her sandals and slides into them as she scans the houses in front of her. Valentina had somehow wandered pretty far from her rental, and she was assessing the best way for them to get the back there.

“You ready?” Juliana asks quietly, making sure Valentina is still doing ok.

Valentina nods and the pair begin walking up the street to their destination.

“I like your purse,” Valentina says, looking down at Juliana’s bag. “Is it an original?”

“Oh no,” Juliana replies. “There’s no way I could afford this designer. I was excited to see a replica at the market.”

“I can’t believe you like him. He’s one of my favorites!” Valentina says excitedly.

“He’s the best, in my opinion. I swear, he’s my biggest inspiration.”

Juliana is simultaneously surprised and impressed that Valentina knows the designer. Her mom had always done her best to keep up with her interest in fashion, but there were only so many names and trends before she would get lost in conversation. Juliana is tickled by the other woman’s enthusiasm.

Valentina continues, “I mean, after my brother and my dad, he’s the only person in this world that I respect. The only guy! Like, I love him.”

“Not even your boyfriend?” Juliana asks.

Valentina’s face falls at the mention.

“Lucho? No. He pisses me off.”

Juliana grows quiet, as she can tell Valentina’s mood has shifted at the subject of her boyfriend. She knows no relationship is simple, but it seems like theirs is flawed in ways that run deeper than the occasional argument. Valentina keeps her gaze locked to their feet as they round the corner to the street that leads up to her house.

“The truth is I’ve had two boyfriends in my life and if you put the two of them together, they don’t form a complete one.”

“Really? So you’ve never been in love?” Juliana asks.

“No,” Valentina answers in the softest voice. “I don’t know if I even believe in that.” She grips Juliana’s arm tighter. “I think it’s some sort of invention for silly people for September 14th.” Her eyes go wide. “I mean, February! I don’t even know the actual date.”

They both laugh at her misspoken words as they approach the courtyard in front of her family’s rental house. They stop at the front gate, and Valentina turns to face Juliana. She slowly slides her hand away from Juliana’s arm and extends it out between them with her palm facing up. Juliana raises an eyebrow in question.

“Let me see your phone,” Valentina requests.

Juliana pauses for a moment and then reaches into her bag to retrieve it. She unlocks the device and places it in Valentina’s hand.

“You’re going to text me, right?” she asks, as she types her number into Juliana’s contacts. “Cause you’re like the only thing keeping me sane these days.”

Juliana feels her chest tighten at Valentina’s words. She knows the other woman seems prone to exaggeration and is also still slightly intoxicated, but for a moment, it makes her feel special in a way she didn’t know she needed.

“Of course,” Juliana responds.

Valentina looks down at the phone as she hands it back to Juliana and notices the time.

“You’re going to be late to work, aren’t you?”

“Just a little.”

Valentina wraps her arms around Juliana and pulls her into a tight hug, holding her close and breathing her in. Juliana allows herself to forget the fact that she’s actually going to be very late for work. But she hasn’t been late once, yet. So she’ll just concoct some story about how she overslept or whatever excuse it is people come up with. She settles into Valentina’s embrace not bothering to let her mind question how long is too long. Valentina finally releases her. She takes a step back and then pushes at the courtyard gate with a little wave goodbye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the well wishes for my trip! I had a fantastic time. Costa Rica was gorgeous. I just wanted to swim in the ocean every day and never leave.
> 
> I also caught the flu on the way back from the trip. Which I, fortunately, am on the upswing of my recovery now. But I was still a little loopy writing this chapter. So hopefully its not a mess. I am not one of those writers that's like "all mistakes are mine! I only reread it once!" My ass has easily reread any chapter I post about 50,000 times because every other word I write I'm questioning my comprehension of the English language. So when I say it might be a mess, believe me its not for lack of trying. Haha.
> 
> Ok. That's all. /ramble. Hope you enjoyed! :)


	3. Chapter 3

Juliana places her coffee mug back down in the saucer sitting on the small wooden table by the couch. The caffeine was starting to focus her a little more and slowly lull her out of her fuzzy morning state. She stretches both of her arms above her head and readjust her back against the armrest of the floral patterned piece of furniture. This couch had clearly been living in the casita for much longer than they had been present. It wasn’t the most comfortable thing in the world, but, for her, it was cozy enough. She picks up the sketch pad and pencil in her lap and resumes working on her latest piece.

Juliana had become interested in historical clothing as of late. Inspired by her favorite designer, she was starting to become charmed by the idea of finding ways to incorporate odd trends of the past into a modern aesthetic. She was thankful the internet existed, because otherwise she’d be at a loss for research. Memories of the first time she saw clips of Project Runway drift through her mind. It was the first time it had clicked with her that this could be an actual job. She appreciated her neighbor in Texas teaching her to sew, but it had seemed more like a useful hobby than a future opportunity. She took a deep breath settling her focus back on the paper.

“Good morning, mija,” Lupita says as she passes by with a yawn and a pat on her daughter’s head.

She disappears into the kitchen for a moment and returns with her own cup of coffee. She cradles it in both hands as she moves to sit down at the other end of the couch. Julianna pulls her legs up from their outstretched position to make room for her mother.

“How’d you sleep?” Juliana asks, watching Lupe cover her mouth again to yawn.

“Bueno,” she answers. “It was just another late night at work. Pancho said we’re entering ‘party season.’”

“Oy. Can’t wait,” Juliana responds. She pulls her sketch pad back up and continues the lines she was working on earlier. Her phone buzzes on the table beside her and she pauses to scoop it up.

> _Val: now Eva is lecturing us on appropriate activity hours :(_

Juliana smiles at the screen and bites at the tip of her thumb. She had started texting Valentina the same day she had been given her number. She was proud of herself for being able to hold off until after her work shift had ended before she sent her first text. Since then, it had been a pretty steady back and forth, with the other woman supplying a play by play of her daily activities.

> _Juls: maybe later we can attend her TED talk on applying sunscreen_

Val responds fairly quickly with the crying laughing emoji and Juliana’s smile widens.

“What’s going on?” Lupe asks, drawing her daughter’s attention back up.

Juliana blushes a little, suddenly feeling like she’s been caught doing something she isn’t quite ready to explain. She shakes her head. She had told her mother about Valentina, but just in passing wrapped up in stories from work.

“Nothing,” she finally replies. “Just texting with a friend.”

“From home?”

“No. It’s Valentina. The girl I met here.”

“Oh,” Lupe says. She watches her daughter for a moment a little concerned with the temporary nature of forming attachments here. But seeing her daughter smile seems to outweigh that concern. “Good. I’m happy to see you make new friends.”

“Me too,” Juliana agrees in a whisper. She stares at the screen for a second longer and then places the phone back down on the table. “So, what are we up to today?”

Lupe takes another sip of her coffee and then taps at the cup in thought. “Hmm. How are we on food?”

“It’s looking pretty dire in the pantry,” Juliana answers.

“Then definitely a shopping trip. Oh! And, Panchito is coming over later to look at the sink.”

Juliana offers her mother a closed mouth smile, as she arches her eyebrow up. “Is that all he’s taking a look at?”

“Mija,” Lupe chastises as she starts to get up from the couch. She swats lightly her daughters leg. “That drip is starting to drive me loca. He offered his help.”

“Uh huh,” Juliana continues to tease.

“We could use your help, too. Unless you have plans with this new friend.”

“Nope. I’m all yours today,” Juliana says. She gets up from the couch and takes her cup to the kitchen. “I’m going to go take a quick shower and get ready.” She kisses her mother’s cheek and heads off towards their shared bathroom.

~~

“I think the washer is cracked,” Pancho says through his teeth, as he strains to turn the wrench. He is laying on their bathroom floor, his upper half uncomfortably squeezed into the cabinet below the sink. The usual contents of that space are spread out on the ground behind him. Juliana had helped move everything out of the way, and she now stood in the doorway in a show of moral support more than actual assistance.

“See. They put these rubber washers in where the supply lines connect to the main valve. The rubber just naturally deteriorates over time and that creates a slow release of water.”

“Ah,” Juliana responds. She’s trying her hardest to concentrate on what Pancho is saying. She really appreciates his help and genuinely does care about fixing the sink, but in this exact moment her brain is struggling to stay focused.

“Gracias, Panchito,” Lupe says, moving to stand beside her daughter. She’s watching Pancho with her hands on hips, bending down to see what he’s looking at. “We really couldn’t have done this without you.”

Juliana suddenly feels her phone vibrate in her back pocket.

“Gracias a dios,” Juliana mumbles, as she retrieves the device and glances at the name displayed on the screen. She takes a few steps away down the narrow hall that divides their bedrooms.

She places the phone to her ear and offers a soft, “hey.”

“Hey,” Val’s voice echoes in her ear. “What are you up to?”

“Watching my mom’s friend try to remove the supply line from the valve to get the washer.”

“I have no idea what any of that means,” Val responds flatly.

“Me either,” Juliana admits quickly. “It’s been like 4 hours since you texted. I was about to send out a search party.”

The line goes quiet and then Juliana hears Valentina let out a small sigh. “Yeah.” She extends out the word. “There’s been some drama here, but everything is fine now.”

“Que? Esta todo bien?” Juliana asks. The concern evident in her rising voice.

“It’s really fine. Are you free tomorrow? Want to come over?”

“I can after work.”

“Ok,” Val says, already seeming lighter. “See you then.”

“Ok. Bye,” Juliana responds. She hears Valentina say the same and the line click.

Juliana is caught off guard by the feeling of elation in her chest at the invite. In response, she finds herself doing a fist pump in the air. When she turns to see her mother watching her with a curious look, she attempts to casually turn it into a wave. But she knows the huge smile across her face is giving her away.

“I got it!”

Juliana hears Pancho celebrate his victory of finally disconnecting the line. His words are quickly replaced by concern at the sound of a sudden gush of water flowing onto the floor. She runs back towards the doorway to see Pancho hastily turning at the handle on the valve. The three of them pause for a second and just stare at each other in relief when the water thankfully stops.

Lupe begins to laugh, as Juliana covers her mouth to stifle her own. Her mother steps over a stunned Pancho still sitting on the floor to retrieve a towel for him from the shelf.

~~~

The early afternoon sun is beaming overhead when Juliana tentatively approaches the gate that surrounds the courtyard in front of Valentina’s rental. She had always had the other woman by her side when arriving here. Without that companionship, she felt a little out of place and intimidated at the thought of entering the large home.

A tall man dressed in a black suit, tie and sunglasses stands at the gate with his hands clasped low in front of himself. She sees the obvious sweat on his brow and thinks that he looks uniquely stoic for someone standing in the tropical heat. Juliana purses her lips and takes small steps forward unsure if she should continue her approach.

“Can I help you?” the man asks.

“I… umm… I’m here to see Valentina.”

“Name?”

“Juliana,” she responds and then pauses. “Valdés.” She wasn’t confident Valentina even knew her last name.

The man presses on his ear piece and speaks discreetly to someone on the line. About twenty silent seconds pass, and then he steps to the side opening the gate for her. She walks by giving him a small smile.

Juliana waits a moment and raps lightly at the front door. There was no response. She shifts in her stance, as she couldn’t help but feel like someone’s eyes were still on her. Starting to worry she was making things awkward she decides to try the handle. It turns without much resistance and she steps inside the foyer appreciating the cool air that surrounds her. She pulls out her phone and sends a quick text to Valentina to let her know she’s here.

“Juls,” she hears a voice call out. As Juliana turns, she sees Valentina approaching her quickly from a long hallway. In a few full steps she was in her space, wrapping her up in a tight hug. “I’m glad you could make it. There should have been a guard here to greet you.” Valentina doesn’t wait for Juliana to respond. She takes her hand and starts leading her back down the hallway. “How was work?” she asks, as they make their way into her room.

“It was a slow day,” Juliana responds. Her curiosity starting to get the best of her. “What’s with the muscle?”

“That was part of yesterday’s drama,” Val says, with a roll of her eyes. “I guess someone found out our last name and there were some threats made. It’s been handled.”

“You’re hiding here?” Juliana asks.

“Not exactly,” Val replies. She suddenly seems a little uncomfortable at the topic. “It’s just that my family owns some media companies in Mexico and people can get nosey when they know who we are.”

“People threatening you and your family hardly seems just ‘nosey.’”

“Maybe greedy is the better word,” she continues. “Anyway. We came here so my dad could take a break from his work. It’s his birthday. But, even here, he’s still just so obsessed with it. I’ve hardly had any time with him.” Val shakes her head in frustration. She sits down on the end of her bed, as she runs her hand up through her hair.

Juliana puts her hands in pockets and looks down at her feet. “Yeah. I know how you feel. My father is pretty obsessed with his work, too.”

“Does he work at the resort?”

“No,” Juliana states plainly. Val pats the bed next to her motioning for her to sit. As she does, she sees Val’s eyes asking her to continue. “We actually kind of came here to get away from him.”

“Oh,” Valentina responds sympathetically. “That’s why you moved here?”

Juliana nods. “My mom has a friend here. We thought it could be a bit of a fresh start.”

“I lost my mom when I was young,” Valentina says quietly. She picks at the bedspread beneath them avoiding eye contact. “It’s probably partly why I’m so frustrated with my father not prioritizing us now.”

Juliana reaches out placing her hand gently over Val’s.

“I’m sorry,” Juliana offers.

“It was a long time ago,” Val says like she’s used to explaining away the pain. “I have my brother and sister.”

Valentina looks up at the other woman, thinking of Eva and Guille and how she probably should be more appreciative of their presence. She feels for Juliana only having her mom, and now being in the position to have to run from her own father. She can’t imagine what would have to happen in her life for that to be a reality. Yet, Juliana still sits here showing compassion for Valentina’s problems.

“You’re here!”

Lucho interrupts the moment entering Valentina’s room uninvited. Juliana watches Sergio slowly step in behind him. Recognition dances across his eyes.

“I’ve been texting you. Who’s this?” Lucho asks.

“This is my friend, Juliana.”

“Excellent! That will make us a foursome,” he says in response. He grabs Sergio’s shoulders and shakes him. “We’re still going down to the beach, right?”

Valentina glances back at Juliana apologetically.

“Lucho, I forgot.”

“It’s not a problem, baby. We can all go.”

“We were planning on having more of a girl’s day,” she explains. Val looks at the other woman for support. Juliana realizes she had sort of shrunken back at Val’s boyfriends sudden arrival.

She sits up straighter and shakes her head. “I don’t have my bathing suit.”

“You can borrow one of hers,” he explains, dismissively. He takes Valentina’s hands into his own as he lowers down in squat in front of the bed to meet her eye level. “Come on. We haven’t had that much time together here.”

Val takes a deep breath and then gives him a small nod.

~~~

Juliana watches Valentina’s back as they make their way from the house down to the beach. Lucho has his arm draped across Val’s shoulders and they seem to bickering about something new that she can’t quite hear. Juliana glances back behind her to see a couple men in suits trailing an appropriate distance from them. She lets out a small sigh. This is not how she wanted to spend her afternoon.

Sergio leans over to her and quietly says, “I know who you are.” He’s in step beside her carrying a cooler and a blanket, awkwardly swinging the weight of the items in front of him.

Juliana raises her eyebrow at his comment and fights to stop herself from an impolite reply.

“You’re the waitress from the restaurant the other day,” Sergio continues.

Juliana gives him a closed mouth smile and nods.

“Ha! I knew I recognized you.” She can feel Sergio standing a little taller in congratulations to himself. “So do you know Valentina from school or something?”

“No. We met here,” she explains curtly.

“I see. She found herself a vacation toy,” Sergio says with a laugh in his voice. Juliana can’t help but scowl in his direction. “Don’t take it personally. All the millionaires are like this. They call you up when they are bored.”

“I don’t think Valentina is like that,” Juliana says.

“But you just met her, didn’t you?”

Juliana is saved from having to continue the conversation as Lucho turns around exclaiming that this is their spot. She swipes the blanket from Sergio and moves closer to Val. Her and Valentina then work together to lay out the large colorful fabric on the sand. She watches Lucho and Sergio out of the corner of her eye whispering while they open the cooler.

As the women move to sit down, Valentina gives her a look silently asking if she’s ok. Juliana smiles back at her.

An open beer is suddenly thrust into Juliana’s hands courtesy of Valentina’s boyfriend. The smell of it hits her nostrils and she turns her head in response.

“You don’t like it?” Val asks.

“I don’t like the taste of alcohol,” she answers.

“We can get you something else.”

“I guess more for me,” Lucho says cheerfully. Juliana extends the bottle out to him and he takes it quickly turning towards Valentina. “Baby, you want to swim?”

“Not right now,” she says.

Lucho then looks at Sergio and motions towards the water with a nod of his head. Sergio scoots a little closer Juliana on the blanket. “But I haven’t finished my drink yet!”

“Well, be a man and finish the damn thing and let’s go.”

“Fuck,” Sergio mumbles in response.

He pulls off his shirt and throws it down running after his friend. As he approaches the water, the women watch as Lucho predictably tackles him into the surf. Val laughs lightly in response.

“I think Sergio might like you.”

Juliana can’t hide her sudden look of disgust. Valentina let’s out a laugh covering her mouth. She takes a long draw from her beer, as her and Juliana settle into a comfortable silence. The beach is much more active today than the quiet morning they spent together. Families and couples are playing in the waves and sunbathing on the sand. Juliana stretches out her legs in front of her as she leans back on her hands. It’s weird being on the other side of it all. She was always well aware that it was a beautiful location. It just never seemed intended for her to enjoy this way.

The thought reminds her of the men guarding them. She looks back over her shoulder to see them standing in the shade just in the distance.

“You’re not worried they’re going to die from heat exhaustion?” she asks Val.

“You know what I’ve always wanted to do?”

Juliana looks over at Valentina. She’s not sure if the other woman even heard her question. She follows her gaze out to the ocean. Valentina’s watching a woman and her daughter in the distance paddle by in a bright green kayak.

Valentina stands and extends her hand out. Juliana takes it and they start the trek over to the rental stand.

Juliana hangs back as Valentina handles reserving the equipment. Then a very tan individual that, thankfully, Juliana does not know comes over to hand them life jackets and explain how to negotiate the waves.

As they begin wading into the water, Juliana senses Valentina’s hesitation. She’s not familiar at all with the kayak, but is probably the more comfortable one in the ocean. She pictures Valentina having a lot more experience poolside. Juliana clutches at the handle on the nose of the kayak as a wave approaches and steadies it as the frothy water pushes against it.

“If it starts getting away from you, just let it go,” she explains to Valentina. “When this next set finishes up, we’ll get in. Just hang tight for a second.”

She looks back again and watches the other woman visibly relax as they make eye contact. There’s something resembling adoration in her eyes and Juliana forces herself to focus on the task at hand.

The water calms around them and Juliana indicates this is their moment. After a few ungraceful attempts, they get in and immediately start paddling out towards the open ocean. Once they clear the breakers, Juliana turns around and smiles at Valentina who is eyeing her paddle suspiciously.

“You ok?”

“Yeah. I just…” Val starts to respond. She flips the paddle around once again and settles it across her lap. “I must look stupid.”

Juliana responds with a caring smile. “Just follow my lead, ok? Keep the same rhythm as me.”

They take off without a particular direction in mind, slowly making their way out into the bay and then turning to follow parallel to the shore. Valentina watches Juliana in front of her as she confidently dips her paddle into the water in turn on either side of the kayak. She tries her best to match the other woman’s natural flow and lets her lead them wherever it is they’re going. Juliana only stops to point out the schools of small brightly decorated fish that swirl in the deep blue water beneath them.

After a while, the pair decide to take a brief break placing their paddles down inside the kayak. They’re not too concerned about the boat drifting very far in today’s gentle swells. Juliana turns in her seat placing her legs over the side dipping her feet into the water. She watches Valentina pull her hair back into a bun. The golden sun reflecting off the other woman’s shoulders.

“So is it everything you hoped for?” Juliana asks, kicking her feet in the water.

“It’s fun,” Valentina responds. There’s not much enthusiasm in her voice. Juliana stares at her skeptically. “No. It’s good,” she continues. “I guess I just expected it to be more, like, dangerous.”

Juliana tries to stifle her growing smile as she begins to rock her weight back and forth startling the other woman. Valentina grabs the sides of the boat attempting to stabilize them.

“You’re looking for danger on the high seas, hey?”

“Juliana,” Val warns, her voice shaking. “That’s not what I… ah!”

Both of them suddenly go overboard as Juliana finally tips their weight enough for them to flip. They emerge quickly from under the water, floating easily in the salty ocean with the help of their life jackets. Valentina wipes the water away from her face, as Juliana laughs at the other woman’s stunned expression.

“I can’t believe you did that!” Valentina swats water at Juliana in retaliation.

The laughter continues to bubble up from Juliana loud and genuine. She tries her best to dodge the water being thrown at her and shields her eyes. She feels the tug on her life jacket and opens her eyes back up to find Valentina’s hands gripping it tight. She pulls them close, the laughter dying on Juliana’s lips. Their heads just in the shadow of the kayak floating near them.

“I don’t know when. I don’t know how, but there will be revenge,” Valentina whispers.

The intensity on her face almost makes Juliana a little nervous, but the playful glint in the other woman’s eyes gives away her empty attempt at intimidation.

“I look forward to it,” Juliana responds.

She watches Valentina open her mouth to respond, but the other woman pauses. Instead, her gaze drifts down to Juliana’s lips then back up to her eyes. Valentina licks at her own lips tasting the salt.

“How do we get back in the boat?”

Valentina’s question catches Juliana a little off guard. She shakes her head as she reaches out to grab the handle on the side. She’s not entirely sure how it works, so she takes a shot at it herself. She’s grateful its easier than she expects. With a little effort, she’s able to grab the handles across the other side of the boat and pull herself up into it. She looks back down at her friend still floating beside the boat. Val appears pretty perplexed or maybe just distracted.

“I’ll help you,” Juliana says, as she slides back into the water. She moves over behind Valentina and places her hands on the other woman’s hips beneath the water. “You’re going to use your momentum to raise yourself up and grab the handles on the other side of the boat.”

“I’m going to use my what?”

“One. Two. Three.”

Juliana suddenly pushes herself underneath the water, cradling Valentina’s thighs in the palms of her hands and using the rise of her natural buoyancy to help Valentina up onto the side of the boat. From there, Val is able to pull herself all the way in. Then Juliana repeats her motions from before and joins her in the kayak.

The women get situated and start their return to the shore. Juliana glances back occasionally to make sure Valentina isn’t putting her revenge into motion. What she sees doesn’t look anything like that. Valentina is singing softly to herself, keeping well in time with Juliana’s strokes. It’s the most relaxed she’s seen the other woman since they first met. Juliana figures she doesn’t have a ton to go off of, but Valentina always seemed to be carrying this weight with her. If anything, the drinking had made it clear that the other woman was at unrest. Juliana didn’t feel she was in a position to judge. Being in this new, distant place just made it easier to avoid her own problems. When she wasn’t working, she disappeared in sketches and daydreams of simple things like a real house or an actual education. Valentina was starting to draw Juliana out of her own head. It felt good, for the most part. But she couldn’t quite shake the feeling that she was underserving or that what Sergio said about the temporary nature of Valentina’s interest was true. Their lives were so very different from each other. And, things hadn’t traditionally worked out for her in the past. Why would this be any different?

“Juls,” she hears Val say with excitement in her voice.

Juliana turns around to see the other woman pointing down towards the water. They watch a sea turtle glide underneath the kayak and then disappear in the depths. She looks back up at Valentina. The blue eyes shining brightly at her bring a sense of calm she can’t quite explain. She takes a deep breath. Maybe things could be different.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How's a girl supposed to focus on writing her fanfic when Maca & Barbie are out here filming their own personal Juliantina AU? These two. I've never wanted to use #blessed in my life until now. 
> 
> Thanks for the comments and likes everyone! Hopefully there won't be such a big wait for the next chapter :)


	4. Chapter 4

Valentina pokes at her phone, flipping mindlessly through pictures of her friends and random pages on the internet. She’s killing time trying to distract herself from pretending that she isn’t just waiting for Juliana to text her today. She slides the soles of her feet back and forth on the lounge cushion she’s currently stretched out on. The morning sun is already full on the large back patio alongside the pool at their rental house.

In her periphery, she sees her brother approach and settle on the lounge next to her.

“You going for a swim?” Guille asks.

She shakes her head ‘no’ in response and keeps her eyes trained on her phone. She swipes her photos app up, closing out the window to stop herself from staring for the hundredth time at the pictures that Juliana had sent of her latest sketches. She had been pushing the other woman to send them to her yesterday evening. After some mild protesting, Juliana finally gave in and texted them over before she went to sleep.

“How are you doing?” she questions, as she turns towards Guille.

He offers a tepid shrug in response. They both have the same indifferent disposition these days. His attitude didn’t seem to concern anyone, though. He was never as naturally bubbly as Valentina, so no one marked the change. Valentina felt he did lack a lightness about him that he once had. As the years went by, there was no doubt that their mother’s passing had affected everyone in the family irrevocably.

The siblings kept their eyes fixed on each other for a moment and then Guille turned his gaze staring out at the reflection of the sun on the water. Valentina reaches her arm out and shoves playfully at his leg.

“We need to get you a girlfriend… or a boyfriend.”

Her brother turns his head to look back at her with a smirk and a roll of his eyes at her comment.

“What? There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“No. I know there’s nothing wrong with it, but no. I like women.”

His words are calm and genuine, and there’s something in the delivery that settles Valentina’s nerves at the topic. Not that it had really ever been a concern for either of them. It just felt like something that was unspoken that she suddenly needed to hear affirmed out loud. Valentina knew she wasn’t ready to question why.

“What about you?” Guille asks, pulling her away from her thoughts. Her heartbeat picking up at the implication. “How are things going with Lucho?”

“They’re… going,” she answers. Out of nervous habit, Valentina picks up her phone and settles back against the lounge.

“That doesn’t sound good,” he offers.

“That’s because we’re not.” She can feel the harshness of her words as they roll off her tongue. She doesn’t know what to do with Lucho these days. Their usual back and forth felt tedious instead of exciting. Not that their arguments previously were a joy for her. There had been something in them, though. An intensity that she could falsely mask as passion. Now, Lucho’s presence felt weighted and unwelcome. “I just get bored with him. We have nothing to talk about.”

“Is it over?” Guille questions.

“I don’t know,” Valentina answers quickly. She really doesn’t know. But she is growing increasingly sure that, either way, she doesn’t want him here anymore.

“I think as long as you’re honest with him that’s what matters,” he advises. Val nods in understanding. Her brother continues. “Besides you look different these days.”

“Me? No.”

“Yes.”

“Me?” She asks again, as glances down trying to hide the blush she feels rising on her cheeks.

“Hola.” She hears her father’s deep voice as he emerges from the house. His entrance saves her from Guille’s inevitable line of questioning. “I wanted to talk to you two after I had to leave early at breakfast.”

Valentina and Guille glance at each other and then up at their father now standing at the end of their lounges. The silver haired man stood tall and somewhat rigid. Even on vacation, he wore his slacks and tailored shirt. The absence of a tie and the top button being unbuttoned were the only signs that he was dressed for a more relaxed day.

“I know we haven’t had as much time here together as we all hoped,” he starts and then pauses, placing his hands on his hips. “But I’m looking forward to my birthday dinner with the family. I’m going to block time for it, so I would be grateful if you would as well.”

“Señor Carvajal,” one of their bodyguards says as he approaches. “We need to speak with you, sir.”

Leon Carvajal nods curtly. He motions to his children a quick goodbye and then follows the other man back into the house.

Valentina’s phone chirps and she turns her attention to the device already resting in the palm of her hand.

> _Juls: Neta? You really like them?_  
> 

Valentina can feel her smile grow as she stares at the words on the screen. Unable to stop herself, she had sent a series of texts late last night expressing how impressed she was with Juliana’s sketches. She felt as though it was a crime that the other woman was so unaware of how talented she is. She couldn’t help but be a little disappointed when she hadn’t received a response earlier this morning.

> _Val: They are amazing! You’ve been holding out on me!_

Juliana simply replies with a blushing emoticon.

> _Val: How’s work going?_
> 
> _Juls: It’s busy. I was just taking a short break. What are you up to?_
> 
> _Val: Nothing really. Just hanging out by the pool with Guille_
> 
> _Juls: That sounds nice_
> 
> _Val: It’s had its moments. Idk. I just feel kind of trapped here with the guards and everything_

Valentina watches her phone, hoping to see the bubble pop up soon indicating a response from Juliana. The seconds stretch out into minutes and she starts to feel silly at her impatience. She lowers it and purses her lips. Then she can’t raise the phone back up fast enough when it finally chirps, again.

> _Juls: Are you free later?_
> 
> _Val: For you? Always!_
> 
> _Juls: Good. I have an idea. I will stop by after work ;)_

Valentina bites at her lip as she pulls the phone close to her chest. She can feel his eyes on her. She turns to see her brother watching her with a smile.

“What?”

“Nothing,” he responds with a shake of his head. He stands quickly removing his shirt and takes swift steps towards the pool. “Cannonball!” he calls out as he jumps in dramatically splashing her. She lets out a yelp in response when the cool water hits her skin.

~~~

The courtyard in front of Valentina’s house was starting to get uncomfortably warm. She had received a text from Juliana about twenty minutes ago indicating that she was on her way soon and to bring a bathing suit. Val hung out as long as she could inside and then the general fear of getting delayed by someone needing her attention motivated her to wait outdoors.

She saw the movement along the wrought iron fence and then the familiar smile of her new friend. Valentina didn’t wait for the other woman to get to the gate. She sprang to her feet and past the guard standing at the entrance.

“Hey,” Juliana greets her with a large grin as she accepts Valentina’s embrace. The forward motion of her pushes them back a little and Juliana holds on tighter to gain her balance.

“Hi. How are you?” Valentina asks softly in her ear.

“Bueno,” Juliana answers quickly. As the women separate, she takes her hand in her own. “Come on. I want to show you something.”

They walk a few steps and then Valentina halts. She turns back looking at the guard that had begun following them.

“We’re just going for a minute. Please stay.”

She’s not sure if the guard will listen to her, but she has to try. She eyes him closer and he finally gives her a small nod of understanding. The pair begin walking along the street outside her house. Juliana tugs at her friend’s hand pulling Valentina over to a narrow alleyway behind one of the adjacent rental homes.

Juliana looks back around the corner behind them to make sure no one is watching and then faces Valentina with her palms extended out to her right. Valentina turns her head in the general direction of Juliana’s hands and finally notices what she’s motioning towards.

“A motorcycle,” Valentina states. It’s not what she was expecting, but she’s not disappointed.

“Yes!” Juliana responds. “Well, technically, it’s a moped. My mom’s friend, Pancho, rents them at the resort.”

“Where are we going?”

“Anywhere you want.”

Valentina’s smile is large and infectious. She feels a mix of excitement and endearment at the thoughtfulness of the gift. “You know I have absolutely no idea where to go or how to drive it.”

“I have a suggestion,” Juliana says. 

She nods towards the little red and black moped and then reaches out to pull it away from the wall. She grips onto the handlebars and releases the kickstand. One of her first gigs at the resort, before she got her steady waitressing job, was washing and prepping these for guests. She didn’t have a ton of experience driving but enough to understand how to get around. She slides onto the seat and starts it. She then motions for Valentina to join her.

The other woman’s long limbs enable her to easily climb on the bike behind Juliana. She finds the feet rests and then Valentina hears Juliana say “hold on” quietly before a soft jerk of forward motion. Juliana takes them swiftly down the alley quickly putting as much distance as she can between them and the rental house.

Valentina holds loosely onto Juliana’s waist as the women travel up the small streets of the resort heading towards the main town center. Juliana is driving cautiously, making her way politely around the pedestrians wandering through the area. She wanted to give herself a moment to gauge how Valentina would handle being on the moped. She was pleased to find that the other woman seemed comfortable, for the most part.

They move slowly through the main area of the resort watching the people shopping and dining. Laughing at the kids chasing each other and the sunburned families making their way back to their hotel rooms.

Juliana cuts away to another side street and into a section of the resort that Valentina had yet to see. Tall white stucco buildings with tile shingles surround them. They look like private residences, but not quite as large as the homes in her area. Up on the hillside, construction crews were working on building out the frames of more homes.

Valentina focuses her attention forward just in time to see Juliana taking them quickly towards a road barricade. She tucks her legs and arms snugly against the other woman as they slimly fit in the gap between two large concrete barriers. The freshly paved road beneath them winds up a steep hill. Juliana presses harder on the gas attempting to pick up a little speed for the trek. She feels Valentina pull herself even tighter against her back. Valentina’s thighs are holding on firmly to Juliana’s hips and her arms are gripping around her waist. Juliana glances back to make sure the other woman is still doing ok.

“I’m good,” Valentina says softly in her ear, as she rests her chin on Juliana’s shoulder.

The new road they’re on is not much more than a path of curved asphalt through a forrest. Valentina watches the tropical trees pass by as they work their way up an oceanside hill and then down towards a cove. As they get closer, she can hear people talking and laughing and the smell of someone cooking on a grill.

Juliana takes them right up to where the forrest turns into sand. Valentina finds herself a little sad to let go of the hold she has on the other woman. Juliana’s smell still lingers in her nose and her warmth on her skin. She slowly gets off the moped and waits for Juliana to finish parking. They then walk down onto the beach side by side.

“This is so beautiful,” Valentina remarks as the women survey the area.

The beach has similarities to the main bay at the resort, but this cove is smaller and more unique. It’s tucked away, surrounded by thick forrest. The crystal clear blue-green water is gentle and less exposed to the main ocean. About forty feet offshore, an anchored dock floats in the center of the swells.

“This is a local beach,” Juliana explains. “Apparently the resort bought this land not long ago, but they haven’t built it out yet. So some of the families that work here are using it while they still can.”

Valentina and Juliana lock eyes, a moment of solemn understanding passing between them. It doesn’t take long before Val’s mind wanders watching loose tendrils of hair from Juliana’s low pony tail flow around her face. She reaches out and tucks one of them behind the other woman’s ear.

“Do you want to get in the water?” Valentina asks, and Juliana nods in confirmation.

As Juliana leads them over to piece of large driftwood up the beach, Valentina pulls out her phone. She sends a quick text to her brother letting him know that she’s alive and just spending some time with a friend. She’s aware of the fact that she’s going to hear it when she returns for running off like she did. But she also knows how worth it this already feels.

~~~

Valentina watches Juliana swim in the swells just past the breakers a little further out from her. She dives smoothly under a small approaching wave and then glances back at the shore where they had discarded their clothes, phones, and keys in a pile. There are only a couple other families here, and they seem to be mostly gathered on the sand. Parents are cooking on outdoor grills that they had dragged down to the beach, while children played in the shallow surf. The women mostly have the water to themselves.

Juliana feels Valentina’s hand slip into hers as they drift next to each other. They both are extended out on their backs floating effortlessly in the saltwater. Juliana closes her eyes soaking in the sun and the serenity the moment brings. She then raises her head to look over at the other woman.

“We must look like a couple of sea otters,” Juliana says.

Valentina immediately laughs in response. Her relaxed state is interrupted and she places her feet back down touching the ocean floor.

“What?” she says, wiping at her face.

“Sea otters,” Juliana states again, with a laugh. “They hold hands while they sleep so that they don’t float away from each other.”

Valentina hums in response as she dips her mouth just below the water. Her eyes stay focused on her friend.

“You think we can make it out to the dock?”

“For sure,” Juliana confirms quickly.

They both begin a relaxed swim out towards the floating platform. Valentina moves through the water at a faster pace then Juliana expects. She clearly has a lot of experience swimming. Her slim, lanky frame is no doubt naturally helpful in her movements. Valentina reaches the dock first and pulls herself up onto the it fairly easily. Juliana treads water a few feet away, thinking about how Val wouldn’t have had any difficultly getting back in the kayak by herself. She wonders if she had been too quick to offer assistance.

Juliana watches Valentina stand timidly on the dock as it rocks in the swells. The wooden platform is secured to a series of large black barrels floating beneath it for buoyancy and support. It’s anchored to a line that reaches down deeper in the water than Juliana can make out from her vantage point. She approaches slowly and pulls herself up, as well. She stands with Valentina for a moment looking over the side and down into the blue water.

“I had no idea we were swimming with all those fish,” Valentina comments.

They watch the schools swirl under the dock, being pulled by the natural flow of the water. The platform sways a little harder with a larger set of waves coming in and they both sit down. They lay their bodies out against the warm wooden planks that are bleached from years in the sun. Juliana shields her eyes from the glare and lets herself relax. The long workday coupled with the recent swim are lulling her into a sleepy state.

She feels Valentina turn on her side and rest her hand on Juliana’s arm.

“Do you miss Texas?”

Valentina’s question comes out so softly Juliana is not sure at first if she heard it correctly. She looks at the other woman, her scrunched brow displaying a confused expression.

“Oh. So not at all.” Valentina assess from the response.

“No. It’s not that,” Juliana starts. “Well, it is. So yes, but no. It’s kind of complicated.”

She had mentioned living in Texas in passing to the other woman, but they had never really discussed in depth why or how they left. Valentina was great at giving Juliana her space and, for the most part, letting her share what she wanted to on her own time. She appreciated that immensely about her. Juliana wasn’t a big talker and being allowed to just coexist next to Valentina brought her a comfort that she wasn’t even aware she needed.

“Texas itself was alright. It was a fine enough place to live. I actually miss the BBQ sometimes.” Juliana offers a small close mouthed smile at the thought and then pauses. Her expression drops as she purses her lips. “My dad is just not a good guy. He was wrapped up in some bad stuff and we all suffered for it.”

Valentina feels the change in Juliana’s disposition and now is a little regretful for bringing up the topic. She doesn’t understand everything about the situation, and, honestly, she doesn’t really need to know. If Juliana is hurting in any way, that’s enough for her to follow. The overwhelming desire to protect the other woman bubbles up in her chest. The light touch of her fingertips turns into a more solid hold. She lets her hand slide up and down Juliana’s forearm in a show of comfort.

Valentina turns from her side to lay on her stomach. Her arms propping her up as she looks down at the woman next to her. Their eyes meet and Juliana’s expression softens. Valentina can’t help but let her gaze drift down to Juliana’s lips for a moment.

“You know what?” she asks rhetorically, needing a distraction. “I miss my life in Canada. Everything was easier there.”

“You lived in Canada?”

“Yeah. My family sent me there to help with my depression after my mother passed. I think they just wanted me to ‘have fun’… and it worked.” Valentina looks away for a second and bites at her lip. “I had this boyfriend there named Charles.”

Juliana smiles and raises her eyebrows in response, encouraging the other woman to continue.

“I actually lost my virginity to him.”

“Yeah? So you were really into him?”

“Not really. Canada was a very weird time. I mean, Charles and I got along well and had a lot of fun together. He was always up for anything! I don’t know. It’s just, either then or now, sex is not what I expected it would be. You watch movies and read things, and you just think everything is going to be amazing. Maybe I expected too much. I don’t know how it was for you, but for me… maybe it’s me.”

Valentina eyes Juliana looking for a response.

“What?” Juliana asks, feeling self conscious under her gaze.

“I want to hear what you think,” Val requests.

“Nothing.”

“What do you mean ‘nothing’?”

“Well, no…” Juliana says, stuttering through her words hoping she’s not blushing. “No. I’ve never…”

“What? Stop it! You’re a virgin? No!”

Valentina laughs loudly, grabbing back onto Juliana’s arm. She curls in towards the other woman allowing her forehead to drop down onto Juliana’s shoulder as her chest continues to shake from her laughter.

“Don’t make fun of me, Val,” Juliana pleads earnestly.

“No! I’m not making fun of you,” Valentina says, as she looks back up. “You have a world of possibilities to explore! This is amazing. This is the best news of the day.”

Juliana rolls her eyes at the other woman. The large grin on Valentina’s face making her feel like she was still being mocked on some level. Her hand grips onto Valentina’s shoulder, pushing it a little.

“Ok, ok,” Valentina finally acquiesces. “You’re not missing anything.”

Juliana looks away for a moment and shakes her head with a smile. A comfortable silence settles between them. She finds herself wondering more and more these days how she ended up here. This silly, beautiful, ridiculous girl showing up out of thin air and taking over all of the space in her brain. She had had friends throughout her life, but it was always a struggle to get close to someone with her situation at home. Her mom was her one constant. She learned to grow content with being alone a lot of the time. Now, the thought of choosing to be alone seemed unreasonable with Val so close.

“Oh no,” Valentina says with a gasp.

Juliana looks back at her in sudden concern. Valentina grips onto Juliana’s upper arms and moves her body closer, slipping her slight frame on top of Juliana. The full contact of warm skin overwhelms her for a moment and she freezes in position. “Oh no,” Valentina repeats, again. “The revenge is here.”

“What?” Juliana calls out, as Valentina grips onto her tighter and starts to rock them side to side. “Wait!” Juliana exclaims just as they roll over the edge of the dock hitting the water hard.

The women separate under the water, making their way to the surface. It’s now Valentina’s turn to laugh at the shocked expression on Juliana’s face. She then starts swimming back towards the shore. Juliana takes a moment to recover and follows after her.

Valentina stands in the waist deep water, waiting for the other woman. She can’t quite stop herself from giggling at the thought of Juliana’s face right before they went over.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Juliana says, catching her breath.

“You survived,” Valentina offers.

“I could have drowned, though.”

“Oh, no, no. I wouldn’t have let that happen. I would have saved you.” Valentina stumbles a little with a laugh and then regains her footing. She eyes Juliana closely and extends out her hand. “Pinky swear.”

Juliana watches her for a moment and then grips Valentina’s pinky with her own.

“I would have done CPR and everything.”

“Is that so?” Juliana asks, a smirk playing at her lips.

Their pinkies stay clasped and Juliana uses the hold to pull Valentina to her. They both can’t help but stare at each other’s mouths as they get closer, hovering just a few inches apart. Valentina feels her smile drop as her face relaxes in such close proximity. The air shifts between them and Valentina moves forward without thought.

Suddenly, a splash of ocean water hits Valentina’s face courtesy of Juliana’s hand. She winces in response, closing her eyes and shaking her head side to side at the other woman.

“You just have no survival instinct, do you?” she asks, as Juliana starts her escape in laughter.

She doesn’t get far before Valentina jumps on her back taking them both back down into the water.

~~~

The ride back to the rental house was mostly quiet. Both women were a little fatigued from the day’s activities and in need of dinner. They took the opportunity to silently watch the setting sun. The sky was filled with vibrant oranges and pinks radiating up from the horizon over the water. Valentina held onto Juliana tightly the whole way back, her body pressed snugly against the back of the other woman. She could feel her still damp bathing suit soaking through her shirt. The wind whipped through her long wet hair and against her sun kissed shoulders.

Valentina’s thoughts were all over the place. Her mind kept landing back to that moment in the water where she leaned in so close to Juliana. She couldn’t deny to herself what her intentions were. She wasn’t sure if Juliana had read the situation the same. She was thankful that the other woman had put a playful stop to what could have been a very awkward moment. She groaned internally at herself. What was she thinking? _She wasn’t_ , she decided. That was the problem.

They round the block that her house is on and then slowly approach. Juliana isn’t sure what they are to be met with on their return. They park across the narrow street and Juliana turns off the moped. Valentina hops off the bike first and then she follows. Valentina places both of her hands in the back pockets of her cut off jean shorts, as she leans back watching Juliana adjust the kickstand. When the other woman turns around, they both smile at each other. There’s a shared sense of nervousness that seems new.

“I had a really good time today,” Valentina states. “It was the perfect present.”

Juliana nods shyly at the compliment.

“I had a good time, too,” she finally responds.

Juliana doesn’t know how they ended up in this staring contest, but she has no intention of ending it. She likes the feeling of Valentina’s eyes connecting so completely with hers. It seems like a good enough thing to do while they both are trying desperately to stretch out their time together as long as possible.

It’s then that Juliana hears the unmistakable click of the moped kickstand. She turns as fast as possible to catch the bike before it falls. She latches onto it, bringing it back upright. Juliana finds she has assistance, though, as two long arms are on either side of her helping pull it into position. She locks the kickstand down again and turns around with a light laugh.

Valentina is standing very close, her arms still on either side of Juliana. They look at each other briefly and then Juliana reaches down and takes Valentina’s hands into hers. They’ve abandoned pretending that either of them wants to be anywhere but in each other’s space. Both of their gazes are locked on each others lips. And, this time, when Valentina leans forward Juliana reflects her action.

Their lips meet softly, the sensation feeling overwhelming and not nearly enough at the same time. Valentina pulls their joined hands around to her back bringing Juliana flush against her. They turn their heads deepening the kiss. Juliana’s lips slide against Valentina’s in a way that sends a shudder through both of them. Valentina slowly pulls back. She needs to see Juliana. She needs to know that this is ok. Based on the warm, quick breaths that float across her lips from the other woman, her confidence is building that this incredible feeling is very mutual.

Before the existential panic of what this all means start to set in, they are interupted by voices from the courtyard. The women separate from each other, taking a step back and releasing their hands.

“There you are!” Eva shouts, as she opens the gate.

Eva approaches them with Guille following behind her. He stops to shut the gate fully before joining them across the street.

“Look, Eva. I’m sor…” Valentina starts.

“Save it. We have dinner reservations. We need to get going.”

Eva smiles politely and somewhat dismissively at Juliana.

“Yeah. Me too,” Juliana comments, as she turns around and preps the bike for quick departure.

“Wait.” Valentina attempts to stop her, but Juliana continues.

She starts the bike and looks back up at the other woman apologetically and then over at Valentina’s siblings. “Bye,” she says to everyone and takes off quickly.

Valentina lets out a deep sigh. She watches the small red tail light on Juliana’s moped disappear down the dark street. She glances back over at Eva who is looking at her expectantly. Eva nods for them to go and Valentina follows her back towards the house.

“You’ve got fifteen minutes to take a shower and get dressed and then we’re going,” Eva says over her shoulder. “Also, wasn’t that our waitress from the other day? You know my position about being friends with the help.”

Valentina and Guille both look at each other as they walk side by side behind Eva. He rolls his eyes in support.

“She seemed nice to me,” he whispers to Valentina, as they step into the house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone still alive? I feel like between Barbarena and SKAM Spain my brain is just kind of useless these days. Hopefully this chapter is half way coherent! Thanks for the kudos and comments ;)


	5. Chapter 5

Juliana first notices them as she’s carrying a stack of dishes into the restaurant kitchen. She recognizes Guille and then Eva as they approach a table to be seated. She stalls for a moment, taking comfort in being hidden in the shadows as she watches for Valentina. Her heart is beating fast at the idea of seeing the other woman. They had been texting back and forth the last couple days. It was just little stuff. Neither of them had attempted to broach _the_ subject over the phone. It was an unspoken rule that this was definitely an in-person conversation.

Juliana wasn’t exactly avoiding it. It just never seemed quite like the right moment. Between her double work shifts and Valentina’s family now watching her whereabouts very closely, they hadn’t been able to share more than just surface level details of their days. Not that Valentina hadn’t tried. She had suggested several meeting times and places. Juliana knew it was on her at this point. That’s why she had spent her recent workdays at the restaurant equally hopeful/terrified that Carvajal family would show.

Valentina finally emerges from around the corner and approaches the table where her siblings are seated. She looks deep in thought, and she’s fumbling with her phone as she joins them. Another waitress greets them and begins filling their water glasses while making polite conversation. Juliana swallows deeply, releasing the breath she had been holding.

There’s a small moment of reprieve where the air can finally return to her lungs and her heart rate to a normal speed. Then, as though Valentina could feel Juliana’s stare, she looks up and makes direct eye contact with her.

The seconds stretch out slow and heavy. The noises around her sound strange and muffled like she’s hearing them underwater.

Valentina gets up from the table, making a quick excuse about needing to the go the bathroom. It’s only then that spell is broken and everything starts coming back into focus for Juliana. She drops her gaze to her feet and reaches down wiping imaginary wrinkles out of her simple white skirt.

“Hey,” Valentina says, as she approaches. Her beautiful blue eyes are bright and filled with anticipation. “I didn’t mean to bother you at work.”

Juliana moves forward. She hesitates for a moment and then embraces the other woman in a small hug.

“I tried to text you to give you a heads up that we were coming here for lunch,” Valentina offers.

“Oh,” Juliana responds, as she steps back. “We can’t have our phones on us, so I only look at it on break.”

“Right.”

“We should talk.”

Juliana feels the panic rise at her own suggestion. She blinks rapidly a few times and then opens her mouth to continue. But her words are caught in her throat as she watches Valentina bite at her lip. And now, Juliana is struggling to take her eyes off the other woman’s mouth. Valentina takes in her reaction and her own smile widens. Juliana drags her gaze back up to make eye contact. She continues her thought.

“But not right now.”

Valentina nods in understanding.

“I’m off work soon. Can you meet me in like an hour and a half?”

“Sure,” Valentina says. “I think we’re going to be around the town center, so just text me a location.”

She reaches up to move a loose strand of Juliana’s hair back from her face. “I like your hair like this.” As the words roll out of her mouth, Valentina recalls the last time she had seen her friend in her work uniform. Juliana had her hair pulled up in this same high pony tail. And now, once again, for the life of her Valentina can’t look away. 

~~~

After leaving work, Juliana had followed her standard routine of shower and changing clothes before texting Valentina. She recommended a location for them to meet in between her and the other woman’s current position. She knew the perfect little place for their rendezvous. It was near the main shopping area but off the beaten path. There was a beautiful star-shaped fountain in the center of the tall surrounding buildings. Intricate lattice works of vines grew up the sides of those buildings, almost making it its own little mini courtyard just off the bustling main thoroughfare.

Juliana relaxes onto the small wooden bench as she waits for Valentina. She stretches her legs out in front of her and lets her head fall back, gently resting against the wall behind her. She wasn’t quite sure what she was going to say. Not that she hadn’t practiced a million different versions of this conversation in her head already. Where she could be bold in the empty walls of her bedroom or in the surrounding steam of the morning shower, now she felt like every confident word had evaporated from her head.

“Juls!”

She hears Valentina happily call her name and she quickly stands up from the bench. As she turns in the direction of the voice, she’s immediately enveloped in a warm hug that pulls their bodies fully together. Juliana melts in the embrace, closing her eyes as she rests her chin on Valentina’s shoulder. They are content to stay in this moment for as long as possible. When they finally break, Valentina takes Juliana’s hand and leads her to sit back down on the bench.

“I’m so sorry I haven’t been able to meet up,” Juliana offers. For some reason, she suddenly feels it’s the least she can do. She realizes that the nerves she had about seeing Valentina again were mostly in her head. Now, in the other woman’s presence, she only feels a comforting mixture of peacefulness and excitement.

“It’s ok. I know you’ve been busy.”

Juliana catches the movement over Valentina’s shoulder and sees her accompanying bodyguard standing by the alleyway corner. She nods and looks down at their joined hands. Of course, they weren’t entirely alone.

“I’ve just had these double shifts here lately. But, today, is my last evening shift.”

“Good,” Valentina responds. “Because I’ve been wanting to ask you something.”

Juliana swallows deeply, unsure of where Valentina is going with this.

“Tomorrow is my father’s birthday. We’re having a celebration dinner with him. And, I wanted to know if you want to come.”

“But won’t you be there with Lucho?” tumbles out of Juliana’s mouth before she can stop herself.

Valentina winces slightly at his name. She reluctantly releases Juliana’s hands, as she looks away.

“No. I sent him home.”

“What?”

“We got in this big fight the other night. I told him it was over,” Valentina explains flatly. “Him and Sergio flew out yesterday. I didn’t want him to be there, anyway. I want you to be there.”

Juliana is suddenly at a loss for words. She stares at Valentina in slight disbelief. The other woman’s expression had turned much more serious at the mention of her former boyfriend. Juliana should be elated at his departure, but an overwhelming feeling of guilt settles heavy on her chest. _Had she done this?_

“Val, I…”

“Say you’ll come,” Valentina pleads.

“I don’t even know your father,” Juliana replies. Her shoulders rolling in, as she begins to pull away.

“Well, I hope he’ll be there… so you’ll be able to meet him. Besides, you’ll be with me.”

The idea of Valentina wanting her there to just simply be with her fills Juliana with a warmth she can’t quite describe.

Valentina’s disposition was starting to lighten. She could tell Juliana was on the fence, and she felt the excitement rise in her. For whatever reason, there was no one else she enjoyed convincing more than her new friend. She ducks her head a little and widens her eyes in an attempt to lure Juliana back out from whatever head space she was retreating to.

“Val, I mean, are you serious?” Juliana asks.

“Serious.”

“I don’t have anything to wear, and I don’t have the money to buy anything either. So I can’t go like that.”

“You can borrow something of mine,” Valentina offers. She sees Juliana’s continued hesitation. “Por favor,” she whispers, leaning closer.

Juliana tries to fight her smile. Her jaw flexes and she looks away for a moment as her lips purse. She knows she can’t say no. There’s not even a point in putting up a resistance when Valentina looks at her like that.

“Ok,” she finally agrees. Valentina squeals as she dives towards her pulling Juliana into a tight hug. Juliana allows herself to sit in the embrace for a moment. She takes a deep breath and releases it slowly. “I, unfortunately, have to get going.”

Valentina pulls back and takes Juliana’s hands in her own.

“I’ll walk you to the restaurant."

“Oh. I’m not going there,” Juliana explains. “I’m working evening shifts for Pancho.”

“Your mom’s friend?” Valentina asks, her voice going high in question.

Juliana nods.

“Why? Is he short staffed?”

“No. I just wanted to pay him back for letting me use the moped.”

“Juls,” Valentina says her name in what sounds like a long sigh. She shakes her head a little. “You don’t have to do that. I could have just paid for the rental.”

Juliana bristles at her words. She wants to know what it is about her that people think she’s in constant need of charity. When she had asked Pancho if she could work for him for free to pay him back, he had immediately dismissed the idea saying it was unnecessary. Only after standing her ground, for what she could imagine was an annoyingly long amount of time, had she managed to argue her way into covering some shifts for him. Now, Val sat in front of her also wanting to dismiss her effort.

“It was a gift,” Juliana explains. Her words sounding thin in her ears.

The longer Valentina stares back at her, the more ridiculous Juliana feels for letting her pride get the best of her. She knows Valentina only offered to cover the cost out of the genuine kindness in her heart. Instead of reflecting Juliana’s frustration and escalating into argument, Valentina merely waits patiently. When she sees Juliana’s eyes soften, Valentina simply says, “thank you.”

~~~

Valentina hears the light knock on her bedroom door and looks up just in time to see Juliana poke her head in. As soon as their eyes meet, both women smile broadly at each other. The last twenty-four hours or so had been pure torture for Valentina. She couldn’t get her brain to focus on anything other than spending this evening with Juliana. She was happy to finally get a little time with her father, but even more so, that her new friend would be at her side. Valentina hops off her bed and quickly walks over. They hug briefly in greeting and then Valentina takes Juliana’s hand and leads her deeper into the room shutting the door behind them.

“I’ve picked out a few things for you to try on,” Valentina says, ushering the other woman towards her connecting bathroom.

They walk in together still hand-in-hand. Valentina motions towards the hook on the wall and Juliana turns to look at Valentina’s selections. She grabs the hanger with the first dress and runs her fingertips across the soft fabric. Juliana scans the garment, marveling at its cut. She notices the price tag still hanging from the label.

“Val. You didn’t buy something just for this, did you?”

“No,” Valentina answers quickly. Juliana stares at her skeptically. “Really, I didn’t. I just have a lot of new stuff I haven’t worn yet.” She watches Juliana examine the dresses, as she runs her hand up through her hair. There’s a small feeling of panic. “If you don’t like anything, just let me know. I won’t be offended at all. I have more options, or we can always just go get you something else.”

Juliana turns back to look at her. She finds Valentina’s sudden ramble quite charming. Although, she has no clue what she has to be nervous about.

“These are beautiful,” Juliana says.

Valentina visibly relaxes at her words. Her shoulders lower from their heightened position. She lets out a shaky breath and smiles. As Juliana watches Valentina’s eyes lazily drift down to her mouth, she realizes why the other woman is anxious. They’re alone for the first time since _it_ happened. And, they’re alone in close quarters.

“Right,” Valentina says, swallowing hard. “I will just let you try these on.”

Valentina lets go of Juliana’s hand and backs out of the bathroom, closing the door on her way out. Juliana takes a second, releasing a long breath and leaning against the counter. She turns and catches herself in the mirror. Her cheeks have a pink tint to them and her eyes are dark and somewhat dazed. She shakes her head at herself. The smile on her face is starting to feel familiar. She covers her mouth with both hands to stop herself from just squealing in delight.

Juliana doesn’t know what to do with herself. She spent yesterday evening and today at work just thinking nonstop about Valentina. She couldn’t focus. She could barely eat. If she wasn’t so damn happy, she would be mad at herself for indulging in this feeling. There was nothing long term about this situation and there never could be. But, regardless of all the glaring warning signs and fears, she couldn’t help but be pulled further in. Whatever was happening between them was like a rip current, and if she fought it, she would only exhaust herself.

“What time does dinner start?” Juliana asks Valentina through the closed door, as she starts to disrobe.

“I think in like 30 or 45 minutes,” Val answers. “I don’t know if there’s an exact time. We have a personal chef tonight. So we’ll just convene in the living room then and see what the plan is.”

“Ah,” Juliana acknowledges. She pulls at the zipper of the white floral patterned summer dress she just put on. The billowy skirt hits just above her knees. It’s pretty in its own right and well-fitted, but it doesn’t seem quite right for the occasion. She opens the door slowly. Valentina is sitting on the end of her bed flipping through her phone. She looks up to make eye contact and then scans her dress.

They watch each other briefly and immediately burst into laughter. Juliana says ‘no’ and Valentina shakes her head in agreement immediately. Juliana turns on her heel and walks back into the bathroom for another try.

It takes her a minute to claw her way out of the first dress and into the second, but this one is most definitely worth the effort. Juliana tactfully avoids obsessing too long about the still attached price tag, because this little black dress was perfect. The deep v-neck on her chest and the snug fabric across her hips were very flattering to her frame. She turns around again examining herself in the bathroom mirror. Before the doubt can set in, she rushes towards the door to share the good news with Valentina. Juliana opens it quickly immediately stopping in her tracks.

Valentina is standing across the room faced away. She’s changed into her own dress. The flowing fabric sits open on her shoulders leaving her full back exposed to Juliana.

“Hey,” Valentina says, glancing over her shoulder. “Can you help me zip this?”

Juliana feels her heart pounding in her chest. She makes a noise in her throat that she hopes sounds something like a ‘yes’ as she begins to close the distance between them. Valentina is waiting quietly in front of her. Juliana pauses for a moment and then reaches out tentatively. The seconds seem to tick by as she moves her hand slowly towards the other woman. When she feels her fingertips brush the soft expanse of skin in front of her, she freezes. She then regains her focus and trails her hand down. The loud click of every tooth of the zipper closing as she pulls it up echoes in her ears.

Valentina turns around swiping her hair back from her shoulder softly saying ’thanks.’ As soon as she sees Juliana in the new dress, she feels her mouth fall open. Her eyes move across her hungrily. If she could pay attention to anything other than how beautiful Juliana looks in that dress, she might be a little embarrassed by her reaction. But, as it stands, Valentina could do very little but drown in the sight of the other woman.

“Wow.”

Juliana blushes at Valentina’s comment.

“It’s perfect.”

“That’s what I thought, too,” Juliana confirms.

“You like it?”

“Yeah. I like it.”

Juliana smiles and looks down, feeling a little self conscious under Valentina’s very attentive gaze.

~~~

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter! It's technically only the first half of what was planned. But I selfishly needed to get it out there so I could stop poking at it and fully focus on the 2nd half. I promise there's more action in the next one! Thanks for reading :)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The previous chapter was posted on Saturday. So if its been a few days since you've joined us, please go back and read that one first :)

The women walk down the long corridor that leads to the main part of the house arm in arm. Juliana appreciates the support, as she is still gaining her bearings in the tall heels Valentina had leant her. After they had finished selecting their outfits for the evening, they both spent a solid amount of time in front of Valentina’s bathroom mirror applying their makeup and styling their hair. Juliana wasn’t sure if they were going to make it to dinner even remotely on time. Both of them were unfocused on the task at hand, giggling and teasing each other as they got ready.

“You look really beautiful,” Valentina says softly, as she leans closer to Juliana’s ear.

Her eyes scan up the other woman’s long neck and across her defined jaw. Valentina was pleased that Juliana agreed to wear her hair up tonight. She felt as though sometimes Juliana hid behind her raven locks. She only pulls her eyes away from Juliana when they approach her brother. Guille is sitting on the couch in the living room looking at his phone. He stands up to greet them as they get closer.

“Hey,” Valentina says to him. “I want to introduce you to Juliana.”

“Hola. Como estas?” Juliana says, extending her hand out to Guille.

As they politely nod to each other and shake hands, Juliana hears more people approach behind them.

Valentina turns around to see Eva scanning Juliana’s back. The sisters lock eyes for a moment, looking at each other knowingly. Eva’s words from the other night ring through her head. Valentina raises her chin and puts on a fake smile. She taps on Juliana’s arm prompting her to turn around, as well.

“This is Juliana,” Valentina states, her eyes passing over Mateo briefly and then settling on Eva. She turns to her friend. “And, this is my sister, Eva, and her husband, Mateo.”

“Nice to see you, again,” Juliana says with a smile. “And, to meet you.”

A brief second of silence settles between the newly acquainted group. Then a server arrives, alleviating the awkwardness by distracting everyone with a tray of champagne flutes. They all take a glass, except Juliana. Eva watches Valentina offering hers to the other woman, but Juliana politely declines which only seems to raise Valentina’s concern. The women are engaged in a nonverbal conversation, their expressions bouncing back and forth as Juliana continues to push back on needing anything.

“Something wrong?” Eva asks. They both look over at her.

“Oh, no. Not at all,” Juliana responds, feeling a little self conscious at attracting her attention. “I just don’t drink.”

Eva raises an eyebrow at the reply. “Well then, let’s get you something else.”

Juliana shakes her head and lifts her hand to say it’s unnecessary.

“Nonsense,” Eva continues. “We’ve got like fourteen different juices in there. We’re bound to have something you’d like.”

Juliana offers her a closed-mouth smile, but before she can respond they are interrupted by another voice asking for their attention.

“Perdóneme.” The server pauses and smiles. “We’re ready for everyone to join us at the table.”

Valentina and Juliana stall for a moment allowing her family to walk ahead of them. Valentina looks in Eva’s direction and rolls her eyes. She had warned Juliana about how her sister can be sometimes. She hoped that since it was a special occasion that Eva was going to go easy on them. Only time would truly tell. Juliana loops her arm back through Valentina’s and nods for them to start walking in the direction of the dining room. When Valentina’s eyes meet hers, she can’t help but smile.

As they move through the house, Juliana realizes how much she had never paid attention to it before—not that she had been here many times. She was just always laser focused on getting to Val’s room. There was something about the meticulously kept space that made her feel like she would be in trouble if she was spotted wandering the halls alone. Everything was decorated very modern, but with a tropical influence. The back wall of the great room is lined with massive windows that look out onto their private patio and pool. Even though Juliana had walked past these homes many times on way to and from work, she had never had a reason to go in them. It was all still very impressive to her. But what stood out most, was that the guest of honor seemed to not be present.

Juliana and Valentina were the last out of the group to arrive at the oversized dining room table. Eva and Mateo were sitting across from Guille. Valentina insisted that Juliana sit next to her brother and she would sit on the other side of her a little further away from the head of the table. As they started to pull out their chairs, León finally made his entrance.

“Hola, mis amores,” he greets everyone, their heads turning in his direction.

Juliana watches him approach. He’s a tall, silver haired man with light eyes and an easy smile. There is an air of intensity sitting just below the surface of his current pleasant disposition. Juliana definitely recognizes the resemblence. The whole Carvajal family is quite handsome. But León has a magnetism about him that seems distinctly similar to his youngest daughter.

“Feliz cumpleaños, Papá,” Valentina calls out to him excitedly, as he gives her a hug and a kiss. She then turns and motions towards the other woman. “This is my friend, Juliana.”

“Welcome,” he says with a smile. “I’m León.”

“Feliz cumpleaños,” Juliana replies, kissing him on the cheek in greeting.

He makes his way around the table greeting everyone individually, as Valentina and Juliana finally take their seats.

León sits confidently at the head of the table. He turns to his son-in-law. “Mateo, how was your flight in today?”

“Es bueno,” Mateo answers. “I’m happy I was able to make it in for your celebration. I trust the vacation is going well, so far.”

“It hasn’t been much of a vacation for him,” Eva comments.

“Hey now,” her father responds. “Someone’s got to keep the lights on… besides your husband here.”

León grabs Mateo’s shoulder as they look at each other and lightly laugh.

“No work talk, though. I promised,” León states. He settles back in his chair, taking on a more stoic expression. “Thank you all for being here. I know there’s been distractions, but I want all of you to know how blessed I feel to have my family around me.” He picks up the glass in front of him and raises it, but before he can say anything Guille calls out, “al cumpleañero!”

The group cheers in response to the toast and takes a sip of their champagne. Juliana raises her glass and feels the other woman’s fingertips on her forearm.

“It’s bad luck to toast with water,” Valentina whispers.

Juliana squints at her with a smirk on her lips. She plucks the champagne flute from Valentina’s hand and takes a small sip. Then immediately she hands it back, making a face. “I’m sorry, no. No. I can’t do that.” They both look at each other and laugh in response.

“Where’s Lucho?” They hear Mateo ask.

Valentina’s face suddenly falls and she looks down at the table playing with the fork sitting on the placemat in front of her.

“He had to go back home,” she answers plainly.

“Oh. That’s too bad.”

Valentina only nods in response. She places her hand on Juliana’s knee and gives it a light squeeze. Juliana looks over at her. Valentina’s expression seems to be requesting forgiveness at the topic of Lucho. Juliana shakes her head ever so slightly in response, letting the other woman know that she’s not at all concerned. She watches Valentina’s eyes slip down to her mouth and then back up again as she licks her lips.

“So, Juliana, did you grow up around here?”

Eva’s question pulls their attention back over to the other side of the table. Eva seems determined to interrupt any moment between them. But, Juliana is starting to realize there’s a lot moments to choose from.

“No. I’m from Corpus Christi.”

“Texas?”

“Yes. My mother and I just moved here about six months ago after I graduated high school.”

“Oh,” Eva responds in a high pitched tone that indicates that she’s surprised by her answer. “So this is like a summer job?”

“Sort of,” Juliana replies. “I’m hoping to save up some money so I can go to college.”

“Juliana is very smart and very talented,” Valentina inserts. “She’s an amazing designer. I’ve seen her work.”

“They’re just some sketches,” Juliana explains away, shaking her head at what she feels like is an exaggeration.

“Basta. You’re incredibly talented!”

The debate is ended by the first course of the meal arriving. Both women lean back, as long rectangular white plates are set in front of them. Juliana doesn’t recognize the dish, but the food is displayed beautifully and smells amazing. She smiles at Valentina and then looks back at the plate in anticipation.

~~~

Dinner itself ended up being a lively affair. Juliana enjoyed watching Valentina’s family interact. The years of familiarity and shared experiences making their conversations full bodied and often funny. Being an only child with a fairly unstable home life, Juliana didn’t have many personal experiences to compare to this one. She had occasional dinners at friend’s homes where she saw similar dynamics. But the combination of the opulence, the food, and these beautiful people with such different lives than hers made her feel as though she was a very distant visitor. Not that she felt excluded. She didn’t have much to contribute to the conversations, but she was made to feel as though she was part of everything that was swirling around her.

Once the topic turns to work for everyone else at the table, Juliana and Valentina decide to make their exit. Valentina knew in a short amount of time she would be roped into the family business, as well. But, for now, she was content to let her siblings take on that burden.

The women abandon what is left of their mostly eaten pieces of birthday cake to head outside. Valentina takes them out to the back patio. The pool lights are shining up from underneath the water, giving the area an effervescent blue glow.

The pair sit down next to the edge of the pool, taking off their shoes, and letting their feet dip into the warm water. With all of today’s excitement and their full stomachs, both women felt content to just embrace the moment of silence. Valentina kept her gaze fixed out over the still water, as Juliana leans back on her arms staring up. She watches the stars in the night sky and lets out a breath. Then she sits more upright moving her hands closer to the edge of the pool. Juliana’s eyes follow the movement of her feet slowly kicking back and forth underneath the water. She then notices how close her hand is to Valentina’s. Juliana extends out her pinky finger to glide along the top of the other woman’s hand.

Valentina continues to look forward but smiles shyly at the touch.

“The thing is I didn’t think I’d ever kiss another girl, to be honest.”

Her words are just above a whisper. Juliana turns her head to look over at the other woman. Even in profile, Juliana can see the blush forming on Valentina’s cheeks. She takes a second to reply, biting at her lip.

“Me neither,” Juliana admits.

At her response, Valentina finally makes eye contact with her. They’re both embarrassed by the conversation, but feel a certain ease in the fact that the discomfort is shared. Valentina ducks her head down and leans in closer to Juliana. There’s something about the close proximity offering a small sense of privacy that will allow her to be brave enough to ask the next question. She opens her mouth, hesitates, and lets out a shaky breath.

“Do you think we’re gay?” she asks, looking at Juliana intently.

For a second, the air feels heavier. Juliana can tell Valentina’s question is very earnest, but what was between them didn’t feel that simple to label. And, truthfully, it didn’t matter to her. Juliana smiles widely in response. They both laugh at the ridiculousness of the question. Valentina drops her head to Juliana’s shoulder, as she continues to giggle.

“No sé,” Juliana answers honestly. “Pero, me encantas.”

At her words, Valentina looks back up at her. A mixed expression of awe and giddiness across her face. A variety of emotions seem to roll rapidly through her eyes at Juliana’s confession. The air between them becomes electric. Juliana leans forward slowly touching their foreheads together, as they both close their eyes. They yield to the moment, just absorbing the touch of each other. Then Juliana moves her hand to Valentina’s neck and tips her head up bringing their mouths close.

Valentina briefly flutters her eyes back open in time to see Juliana eliminating the minute space. Valentina responds in kind, parting her lips as they connect. This kiss is already much deeper than the previous ones they’ve shared. Valentina feels her heart racing. She couldn’t stop thinking about kissing Juliana again after their first encounter. Now that it was happening, she was overwhelmed by how much better it was than any fantasy she had concocted. She pushes back harder, their mouths releasing for a moment and then slotting together tighter. Her bottom lip is caught in Juliana’s mouth and she feels the smallest swipe of the other woman’s tongue across it. The sensation lights a fire in her chest. In response, she mirrors Juliana’s position placing a hand behind the other woman’s neck. Valentina scoots their bodies closer so now they’re hip to hip. She pulls her mouth back and tilts her head crashing back into Juliana.

The tentative exploration of their first kisses has now been replaced by a mutual desire to push things further. Juliana has always been so rational and levelheaded, that Valentina expects the other woman to pull back at any moment. But she’s showing no signs of hesitation or resistance. If anything, Valentina is a little concerned that Juliana is going to climb onto her lap. The idea of that makes Valentina’s head swim. Her body is having an equally charged reaction to that thought.

She tries to anchor herself to the reality that they are still in a fairly visible place. They are shielded somewhat from the house by the patio furniture, but the things that Valentina is starting to feel that she wants to do to Juliana require a door and a lock and everyone else disappearing.

Valentina very begrudgingly starts to pull back, but Juliana follows her keeping their mouths tightly together. In response, Valentina dips her tongue in deeper licking the roof of Juliana’s mouth and soliciting a soft moan from her. The sound startles Valentina enough to make her break away, feeling self conscious about their visibility. Juliana opens her eyes immediately, her brow slightly scrunched in frustration at the separation. Valentina’s eyes sparkle in the light from the pool. A knowing look passes between them. She fights a smile, as Juliana moves back to bring her hand up to cover the smile forming on her own face.

“Vale, are you out here?” León calls out.

Valentina looks over Juliana’s shoulder to see her father standing half way out the patio door from the house. They immediately put a little more distance between them. Juliana still has her hand at her mouth, hoping to cover up her kiss-bruised lips. She can only hear the sound of her blood rushing in her ears, as she attempts to slow her heart rate.

“We’re over here,” Valentina responds to him, bringing her long arm up and waving.

The women glance at each other and then stare straight ahead as he makes his way over to them.

“Sorry. I didn’t realize you were still here,” León says to Juliana. “I’ll let you girls talk.”

“Oh, no. That’s ok,” Juliana responds, clearing her throat softly as she stands up. “I actually should get headed home. Thank you so much for having me.”

“You’re very welcome,” León says with a smile. “It was a pleasure for you to join our dinner. It’s been a long time since I’ve see Vale so happy.”

“Papá,” Valentina warns and then turns her head to look at her friend. “Juls, I thought you were going to stay here tonight.”

“I think you should spend time with your father,” Juliana states kindly. Valentina watches her with concern. “Really,” Juliana confirms softly. Valentina isn’t pleased with this turn of events, but she can tell Juliana is doing what she hopes is best.

“But we’ll still spend your day off tomorrow together, right?” Valentina asks. Her voice sounding more fragile than she’d like.

Juliana extends out her pinky, and the other woman accepts it with her own. She looks down at their joined hands and then back up to meet Valentina’s eyes.

“Promise.”

~~~

After saying her goodbyes, Juliana walks directly from the poolside to Valentina’s room on autopilot. She changes back into the clothes she arrived in, gathers her things, and then makes her way towards the front door. If anyone had asked her what she had been doing for the past ten minutes, she’s not sure she’d be able to answer. Everything was blur after she kissed Valentina. Her head was a foggy mess. She was pleased she was able to just put one foot in front of the other at the moment. Juliana couldn’t recall ever feeling like this before. It was all so brand new and absolutely welcome. It was like the constant anxiety in her brain had finally been usurped by something much more powerful. She smiles wider at the thought of what that something might be.

Juliana approaches the foyer just inside the front door of the large house.

“Señorita Juliana.”

She freezes in place at the words. The voice sends a chill down her spine and a panic in her chest that’s indescribable. She fights to keep the expensive dinner she just had from making its way up her throat.

Juliana turns around slowly. He’s standing there with his hands clasped behind his back wearing the same style of suit as the other security guards. His eyes bore into her as the seconds draw out.

“Outside,” he instructs.

They both walk out into the courtyard and away from the well lit front of the house. As soon as they’re far enough away, Juliana turns around aggressively surprising him.

“What the hell are you doing here?” she asks.

He shushes her, raising a hand as though he’s going to cover her mouth. Juliana flinches, stepping back.

“Keep your voice down,” he whispers harshly. “I’m working.”

“Oh, really? And, it’s just a coincidence that this job is in Costa Rica.”

She punctuates her last two words with her index finger extended out nearly poking him the chest. He looks up in annoyance and places his hands on his hips. “No, it’s not a fucking coincidence. I’ve known exactly where you and Lupe were since the day you left.”

His last words hit a nerve and she flinches. He sees the fear clouding her eyes and lets out a bitter laugh.

“You two always thought I was so stupid.”

Juliana doesn’t respond. She just crosses her arms and looks away.

“Alacrán had a gig for me and I took it. I thought it might be nice to swing by for a visit with my family while I’m down here. Imagine my surprise when I find my own god damn daughter dining like a princess with the mark.”

Juliana changes her stance at this news. She leans towards him, looking him dead in the eyes.

“Don’t you dare fucking touch any of them.”

“You got this all backwards,” he spits out. His eyes shift. Even in the low light, she can see them grow darker. “You better stay out of my way. In fact, you better keep your distance from these people altogether or you’re going to be responsible for what happens to them. Especially, your new little amiga.”

“What are you going to do?” Juliana asks sharply, her jaw clinched in anger.

El Chino narrows his eyes, as he looks intensely at his daughter. She sees a small smirk start to form at the corner of his mouth.

“You know Chino Valdés very well,” he says, his voice deep and low. “Either, we do this nicely, or I’ll take care of it my way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The promised 2nd half! I'm sooo curious to hear what y'all have to say about this. Cheers for two days in a row of updates. That will probably never happen again. Haha. But let's enjoy it while we have it. As always, thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

Valentina brings her phone close to her face. Her fingers glide across the screen, zooming in on a photo she had taken last night. It’s a picture of both her and Juliana, but she has no interest in staring at herself. She’s lost in the bright smile and soft eyes of the woman captured next to her. She scans Juliana’s face over and over again, absorbing every detail and getting lost in the ones she’s already forever burned into her retinas.

 _So you’ve never been in love?_ Juliana’s question from a week or so ago echoes in Valentina’s head. She answered honestly that she never had been. She’s not sure what her answer would be now. Was that what this is? This obsession. This endless need to be near the other woman. This overwhelming fluttering and aching that swelled in her chest. If that was the case, then no. She had most certainly never been in love before.

“Buenos dias.”

Valentina’s father greets her as he joins her at the table. She sits up immediately, dropping her phone down in her lap. She scans the the space in front of her to jog her memory of what it was she was doing before she started looking at photos of Juliana. Valentina grabs the handle of her spoon and pokes at her now soggy cereal. She’s determined to not give away the fact that she’s been sitting here for god knows how long just thinking about the other woman like a fool. She begrudgingly scoops up some soggy corn flakes and puts them in her mouth.

León glances at her with a smirk. He was mostly reading emails on his own phone, but he couldn’t help but also notice his daughter’s amusing behavior. He focuses a little closer on the last message he was reading and instinctually leans back as their cook places his breakfast plate in front of him. León lets out a small huff at something on his screen and then places his phone down.

He watches Valentina for a moment. She’s staring forward with a fairly distant look in her eyes.

“So what are your plans for the day?” he asks.

Valentina looks up at him silently, his question taking a second to register in her brain.

“I… uh… I was supposed to spend the day with Juliana, but I haven’t heard from her yet.”

“Oh,” León responds in concern. “Did she get back to her place safe last night?”

“Yeah. She texted me that she was home, and that she was going to bed. It was late before I saw it,” Valentina says, and then she takes another bite of her cereal.

“Maybe she’s just sleeping in this morning.”

“She’s kind of an early riser,” Valentina states. “Cause of her job.”

León nods his head in understanding. He eyes his daughter closely noting that she looks fairly distressed at the delay in her friend contacting her. He wasn’t exaggerating last night when he commented that this was the happiest he had seen her in a while. He didn’t like seeing her so concerned now. But, at the moment, he was a little distracted by how she wore the same expression she had as a child when she misplaced her favorite toy.

“Well, I’m sure you’ll hear from her soon. People get delayed for all sorts of reasons that can be out of their control.” León pauses. “For instance, they run away for the day on a secret moped trip and show up late to dinner.”

Valentina raises her head to look at him. She knew that he knew, but he hadn’t brought up the topic yet. She braces herself for a speech from him.

Her phone beeps and she scoops it up quickly from her lap. Her face falls the second she sees its only a new text from Lucho. She hadn’t responded to him since he returned back home, but the poor guy kept trying. She let out a long breath in frustration.

~~~

Juliana sighs as she looks up at the lightly water stained ceiling in her bedroom. She was dressed for the day, laying on top of the covers with her arms and legs crossed and anger in her eyes. She barely slept after she got home last night. Where her mind had previously been filled with nothing but all-consuming thoughts of Valentina, now it just ran in circles repeating her father’s words. The situation felt absolutely helpless, and Juliana didn’t do helpless.

At the moment, she was paralyzed. She just wanted to run to Valentina and tell her everything. The thought that the other woman was potentially sitting in harms way at this very moment made Juliana sick to her stomach. But the whole situation was still so unknown. She didn’t know what her father was really tasked with doing. She didn’t know if he was working alone. Did he only show up with this new round of security, or had he been with the family all along? He was so much closer than her, and because of that he would always be one step ahead. Juliana also hadn’t told her mother yet. She had no clue how she was going to respond to the news. If Lupe panicked and made them leave, then she definitely had no shot at helping Valentina. Juliana’s jaw flexed in indignation.

A knock at the front door startles Juliana out of her thoughts. She licks at her lips nervously, feeling unsure if she even wants to answer. Then she hears the knock, again.

Juliana slowly gets up and makes her way to the front of the small home. She peers out the edge of the window and sees a black SUV parked in front. _Fuck._ She figures at this point she really doesn’t have much choice in what’s going to happen next, so she grabs the handle and briskly pulls the front door open.

Valentina is standing on her porch facing out towards the street. She turns around at the sound of the door opening and, as soon as her eyes meet Juliana’s, she smiles widely.

Valentina lets out a yelp as Juliana grabs her forearm and pulls her quickly into the house. Juliana closes the door immediately and locks it. Her eyes are wide as she ducks to the side peeking out the front window, again. Then Juliana takes Valentina’s hand and leads her swiftly back to her bedroom. As soon as they arrive, she shuts her bedroom door, as well.

“What are you doing here?” Juliana asks in harsh whisper.

“We were supposed to spend the day together,” Valentina whispers back. She shakes her head. “Why are we whispering?”

Juliana lets out a breath and closes her eyes. She’s got to calm down or she’s going to give everything away. “No sé,” she responds, her voice sounding steadier than she felt. “I’m just surprised to see you here. How did you find the house?”

Valentina smirks as she looks to the side. “Your friend Pancho is very easily convinced.”

Juliana stares at Valentina with a close-mouthed smile. Panchito may be a push over, but Valentina is quite the charmer.

“My father agreed to let me out of the house alone if I went with our driver.”

“Your driver?” Juliana questions.

“Alirio,” Valentina answers. “He’s been with the family since like forever. He’ll take us wherever we want to go.”

Juliana relaxes at the name. She realizes that she was waiting for El Chino to pop out at any moment like they were in some terrible fairground haunted house. She sees Valentina eyeing her expectantly

“I can’t,” Juliana says, taking a small step back.

“Or we can just stay here,” Valentina offers.

“I can’t,” she repeats.

“I don’t understand,” Valentina says, shaking her head. “What’s wrong? Is this about last night? I thought you were ok with…”

“I was. I am,” Juliana responds quickly, cutting Valentina off. “It’s not about that.” She blushes a little at the memory of what transpired between them.

“Then why?”

Juliana’s heart almost breaks at how small and vulnerable Valentina’s question sounds. She doesn’t want to do this. _God. Did she not want to do this._ But she had too. This was the only way to protect her, so Juliana swallows down her nerves and answers.

“Because you’re leaving.”

Valentina just stares at her in confusion.

Juliana continues. “This is all temporary,” she explains. “You’ll be leaving soon. If we keep going, it will only make this whole thing harder.”

“I still don’t understand,” Valentina replies. Her expression contorting with frustration as she tries to process Juliana’s words. “Why would you think that? Why now?”

Juliana only stares back with no response. She feels so small in this moment. She feels so weak in Valentina’s intense gaze.

Valentina looks up, biting at the inside of her cheek. She doesn’t know what to do with this information. She doesn’t understand why Juliana is freezing up on her. She takes a couple steps away and leans back against Juliana’s bedroom dresser.

The seconds tick by painfully slow. Juliana watches her intently, as Valentina starts to close herself off. It’s almost as though she can feel this wall forming between them, blocking her from Valentina. The warmth and the energy that she usually feels around the other woman evaporates in thin air, only to be replaced by a silence of her own making.

“Val,” Juliana calls out softly, attempting to make eye contact.

The more Valentina closes up, the more Juliana feels like she can’t breathe. She takes a step towards the other woman. Valentina is still looking up, avoiding eye contact. Juliana reaches out with both hands, brushing Valentina’s long hair behind her shoulders.

“Mírame,” Juliana requests in a whisper. She lifts her hand up again and leans to the side to tuck a small strand of hair behind Valentina’s ear. Her fingers curve around the shell of her ear and the gentle contact causes Valentina’s shoulders to drop from their heightened position. Valentina finally meets her eyes.

“Just because we can’t be together, doesn’t mean my feelings for you have changed,” Juliana explains.

Valentina rolls her eyes and shakes her head lightly in response. Juliana’s words aren’t helping. It almost makes the whole thing feel worse. Does she really not understand that its impossible for Valentina to walk away from her? And, even more so, if she knows that she wants her.

“This doesn’t have to end,” Valentina states. “Even when I leave, we can still be together. We can figure something out.”

“It’s not that simple,” Juliana responds.

“It is, actually,” Valentina counters. “If you don’t want to be with me, you don’t have to make excuses.”

“That’s not it,” Juliana insists.

“Then what? What’s really going on here? Because I don’t believe you.”

The conversation only serves to frustrate, as the women return to the impasse where they started. Juliana has gone quiet, again. Valentina stares at her, her confusion rebuilding as the seconds tick on. She really didn’t understand. Why wouldn’t Juliana try? Why would she just give up on them? Maybe the truth was that Juliana wasn’t as invested as her. Maybe she had gotten what she wanted out of their little summer fling and now it was time to send the disillusioned tourist along her way. Even as the thought crossed her mind, Valentina knew she was just spiraling. She knew that Juliana wasn’t the type. Then what was it then?

“Just make this easier on me,” Valentina pleads. She’s starting to feel trapped between the dresser and Juliana. The small room feels as though its closing in on her. “Just tell me that you don’t want me.”

“I can’t.”

“Por favor.”

“Val, I’m in love with you.”

Valentina stills at Juliana’s words. Juliana’s deep brown eyes shine back at her with a certainty that overwhelms. She stares in awe, a small smile forming on her lips. Valentina is pretty sure that nothing in the universe could convince her to look away from Juliana in this moment. Juliana slides her hands from Valentina’s shoulders up to her neck and brings their foreheads gently together. Both women watch each other, then close their eyes and take a moment to process what’s happening. Juliana absentmindedly rubs her thumb softly behind Valentina’s ear.

Every bit of energy between them that had evaporated earlier returns. Juliana can feel the intensity building, again. Her heart races at the thought. Their proximity is intoxicating. Valentina’s warm breaths dance across Juliana’s lips and she finds herself leaning into the sensation. ‘This is not how this was supposed to go’ is the last thought that crosses Juliana’s mind before she feels Valentina’s lips brush up against hers.

Juliana’s so tired, both emotionally and physically from not sleeping last night. And, this, feels so good. It’d be easy to drown in Valentina’s kisses. Her lips taste like forever. And, time feels suspended in this tiny bedroom in her casita. With Valentina’s warm body pressed against her, Juliana starts to believe that maybe if this was all they could ever have, it would be enough.

Their lips glide along each others, softly tugging as they move with their kisses. Juliana’s fingertips slide down Valentina’s long neck. Her hands ghost along Valentina’s chest as they make their way to wrap around her waist. Valentina shudders at the sensation of Juliana’s fingers briefly running across her breasts. She wraps her arms around Juliana’s neck, using her leverage to pull the other woman tighter against her. The motion raises Valentina’s shirt a little and Juliana slips her hands underneath skimming the soft, warm skin of her stomach.

Valentina moans at the touch and presses her tongue against Juliana’s slipping it deeper into her mouth. Juliana is so long gone. Any hope she had of stopping this is completely abandoned. Where her heart and her head were once at odds, now neither of them have a horse in this race. Her body has completely taken over and is only interested in stopping when both women are satisfied. Which easily could be never with how unwilling she feels to ever stop touching Valentina.

Only when the back of Juliana’s legs make contact with her mattress does she realize they had been moving. Valentina had been pushing her slowly backwards crossing the small distance to the foot of the bed. Juliana feels a momentary jump in her already rapid heart rate and gasps. Valentina uses the opportunity to latch onto Juliana’s lower lip, lightly tugging it with her teeth. Juliana runs her hands up the other woman’s back underneath her shirt. In response, Valentina lifts her arms helping her remove the garment. As the shirt reaches Valentina’s hands she grips onto it, pulling it in a bunch to her chest.

“Wait, wait,” Valentina says, through ragged breaths.

“I’m sorry,” Juliana quickly apologizes. Where this all felt impossible to stop seconds ago, Valentina’s sudden hesitance brings it to a screeching halt in Juliana’s mind.

“There’s nothing to apologize for,” Valentina explains. “I just… I don’t want to push you.”

Valentina watches the other woman curiously. Juliana has a solemn expression and is looking down. She can’t tell if she’s upset, but Valentina can feel Juliana’s hands shaking where they rest on her exposed hips.

“Do you want to stop?” Valentina asks earnestly.

“No. I don’t want to stop,” Juliana answers quickly, lifting her head back up to look Valentina in the eyes. “Do you want to stop?”

Valentina shakes her head lightly from side to side, her hair settling forward framing her beautiful blue eyes. Juliana notices then how large Valentina’s pupils have become. She runs her hands up the other woman’s sides and feels the goose bumps form in their wake. Valentina’s shirt, that she had been clutching onto, drops to the floor.

Valentina lets out a long shaky breath, and Juliana feels her stomach clinch in response. She takes both of Valentina’s hands in her own, and Juliana gently sits down on the bed behind her. As Valentina bends over at the waist hovering over her, Juliana releases her grip and slides herself towards the head of the mattress. Her eyes never leave the other woman. Valentina watches her with a smirk and crawls slowly over her. She then settles her body down against Juliana’s, their legs intertwining. Juliana’s hands slip into Valentina’s hair pushing it back from her face as their lips finally reconnect.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I get deeper in this story, I realize my chapter structure for this timeframe is trying to account for way too much in a single chapter. So I'm posting in smaller parts now. Which hopefully translates to me posting faster than expected. Anyway. Sorry for the tease. But on the bright side, we'll both be motivated to return for the love scene in the next chapter! Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoy :)
> 
> Also, feel free to come harass me on tumblr @kristonica


	8. Chapter 8

Juliana slowly opens her eyes, blinking at the early afternoon sunlight that’s peaking through her bedroom window curtains. She attempts to reach for her phone to check the time and immediately feels the weight on her. Valentina is curled up behind her, spooning her tightly. Their bare skin connects flush against each other from head to toe. Juliana’s arms are folded in close to her body beneath the covers, and one of Valentina’s arms is laid across the top pinning them there. Juliana frees a hand to reach out to her bedside table. She hears Valentina make the softest whine in protest of the movement. Valentina’s cheek is resting against her shoulder blade and she can feel the even, light puffs of her breath float across her skin.

Juliana checks the time and lets out a sigh of relief. They had only been asleep for maybe thirty or forty-five minutes. It would still be a little while before her mother returned. Juliana places her phone back down on the table and attempts to turn in Valentina’s embrace. It takes a little maneuvering in the small bed, but she’s able to lay flat on her back with Valentina’s arm still draped across her chest. Valentina adjust a little, snuggling her head into Juliana’s neck and then quickly returns to her slumber.

This really shouldn’t have changed things, but Juliana is finding that it does. She feels _different_. Not only from what had happened between them, but because now it’s irrevocably cemented in her brain that she is completely and utterly in love. It complicates things and brings an intense sense of clarity all at the same time.

Juliana turns her head laying a soft kiss on Valentina’s forehead, just at her hairline. She believed that sleeping with Valentina would only make their inevitable separation more difficult. She knew for herself that it didn’t matter. Either way, it was going to rip her heart out. She was trying to save Valentina from the deeper level of hurt. But it was all for nothing because, in the end, she wasn’t strong enough to fight her desire for the other woman. Part of her selfishly needed this. As long as Valentina was in her arms, it meant she didn’t have to worry about her father hurting her. But that did nothing to protect Valentina’s family.

Juliana lightly bites at her lip as she stares up at the ceiling. She runs her fingertips slowly up and down Valentina’s forearm, repeating the motion. Her heart swells at the thought of the woman in her arms. Juliana had been very nervous when they started. She was confident in her choice to be with Valentina. She was just scared that her lack of experience would disappoint the other woman. She didn’t want to be another lackluster encounter in Valentina’s life.

Her nerves didn’t last for long, though. Valentina was always so mindful of the way Juliana was feeling and this was no different. She encouraged her to communicate, to tell her what felt good and what didn’t. The only problem being that everything felt fantastic. It was hard to specify what she wanted the most, when each touch only felt better and better.

Living in close quarters with her mother her whole life didn’t really give Juliana a lot of free time to explore herself. She just knew that any pressure, whether it was Valentina’s thigh or her hips or her hands, felt amazing against her.

Juliana had always been a quick study. She had taught herself to dance fairly easily. Understanding motion and timing had never been a problem for her. If kissing Valentina had been any indication, they had a natural rhythm between them that was intuitive. Valentina went slow at the right times and fast at the right times. Her fingers had coaxed Juliana, sliding easily as the heat built rapidly between them. Juliana had panted and her lungs expanded, a whimper escaped her throat as her body tightened and released repeatedly under Valentina’s attention.

“Your heart is going a mile a minute.”

Valentina’s sleepy words float into Juliana’s ears and past the fog of the memories currently replaying in her brain. Valentina’s eyes were still closed as she cuddled closer digging her nose into Juliana’s hair. “You always smell so good.”

“I was just thinking about earlier,” Juliana finally responds.

“Mmm,” Valentina hums. “That would definitely explain it.”

Valentina shifts her position to place soft kisses along the column of Juliana’s neck. Juliana smiles as she rolls her head to the side. The kisses grow longer and wetter. Valentina licks at her neck, lightly nipping the skin there. She slides her hand underneath the covers and runs her palm across Juliana’s chest. Her skin tingling everywhere Valentina touches her. Juliana attempts to stifle a small moan in response, but it slips past her lips. Then both sensations stop suddenly, as Valentina sits up.

“Que?” Juliana asks in confusion.

“Just a quick preview of what’s to come,” Valentina says, hopping up from the bed. “Bathroom?”

“I’ll show you what’s to come,” Juliana mumbles under her breath in frustration.

“You already did. Twice, if I remember correctly.”

Juliana narrows her eyes at the other woman, as she props herself up on her arms, feeling her cheeks and chest flush in embarrassment.

“It’s the first door down the hall to the right,” she says, watching Valentina slide her underwear up her long legs. Valentina then scoops up Juliana’s t-shirt from the floor and pulls it over her head. Juliana collapses back against the bed with a huff, as she watches the other woman step out the door.

Juliana runs her hands up through her hair, letting out a long breath. She stretches her limbs out across the open mattress. As much as she just wants to lay here forever indulging in the smell of Valentina on her sheets and the feeling of aches in all the right places, she knows she should get up. The day will get away from them, and only more complications will arise.

Juliana begrudgingly pulls herself up and locates her discarded clothes. She gets dressed as much as she can and then sits on the end of her bed, pulling her hair back in a pony tail. Valentina returns shortly. Her expression changes to one of disappointment when she sees Juliana sitting there partially clothed in her shorts and bra.

“Is everything ok?” Valentina asks.

“Yeah. We just unfortunately need to get up. My mom will be returning home fairly soon.”

“Oh,” Valentina responds. She pauses for a moment at the doorway and then begins moving around the room looking for the rest of her clothes. “I was wondering where she was. I remember you told me that you usually spent this day off together.” Valentina pulls on her shorts and takes off Juliana’s shirt handing it to her. “How long do we have?” she asks, as she finally locates her bra a little further away from the bed. The other woman had gone quiet during her movement. She turns around to find Juliana staring at her naked chest and she watches her swallow deeply. Valentina smiles as she starts to put it on.

“Umm… about an hour,” Juliana finally answers. “Since she knew we were spending today together, she picked up an extra shift at work.” She shakes her head to clear the completely appropriate but not well-timed thoughts from her mind. “How are you feeling?” Juliana asks, putting her own shirt back on. The concern is evident in her voice. Valentina seems fine with everything, but Juliana still needs to hear it out loud for some reason.

“I’m good,” Valentina says, her voice a touch higher than usual. “I’m actually incredible, but just a little hungry.”

Valentina can’t take it anymore. She needs to be touching Juliana. She walks over to the end of the bed placing her arms on Juliana’s shoulders as she straddles the other woman. Her thighs slide against Juliana’s as she settles in her lap facing her. Juliana raises an eyebrow with a smirk.

“What’s your favorite meal of the day?” Valentina asks, eyeing Juliana’s lips.

“Besides you?” Juliana questions quickly. Valentina laughs softly in response. “Of course,” she whispers in Juliana’s ear.

“I like breakfast,” Juliana comments. Her hands wrap around Valentina’s waist and she rubs small circles on her hips with her fingertips.

“Well, now we know who’s going to make breakfast in the morning when we live together.”

Juliana smiles and leans closer bringing her lips up to Valentina’s. “Que rápida me saliste?”

Valentina reflects her smile and moves forward with words at the tip of her tongue. But before Valentina can respond, Juliana slides her hands up Valentina’s torso cupping her breasts. She runs the pads of her thumbs across the stiff peaks she feels underneath the thin fabric of Valentina’s bra. The other woman shudders through a small laugh. Then they’re kissing. Valentina’s tongue pushes into Juliana’s warm mouth, as Juliana continues to massage her chest. All of their previous interactions have Valentina in a quick state of arousal, and it’s not long before she finds herself driving her hips down into Juliana’s lap. The need for friction becoming as crucial to Valentina as the need for air.

Juliana breaks the kiss, taking a deep breath, and encouraging Valentina to sit up a little. Juliana pulls at the button on Valentina’s jean shorts and, as soon as it pops open, she pushes at the sides of the fabric moving it just a few inches down her hips.

Valentina places her hands on Juliana’s shoulders shoving her back down onto the bed. She hovers over her on all fours, as Juliana slides her hand into Valentina’s underwear. Juliana quickly finds the heat she is looking for and matches Valentina’s rhythm. Valentina lowers her upper body a little, placing her forehead against Juliana’s and closing her eyes.

“You’re in so much trouble later,” she says, as she pants hot breaths across the other woman’s lips.

Juliana smirks in response, her lower jaw set forward and her tongue at her teeth. She’s lost in the sensation of the slick warmth that covers her fingers. Juliana adjusts her wrist and pushes up entering Valentina. A short whine is the only reaction she can make out as the sound of her own rushing blood roars through her ears.

Valentina closes her eyes, focusing on the sensation building in her lower belly. She feels desperate and hectic. Where her experiences with Juliana before were just as amazing, things have leveled up in a way. “Deeper,” she whispers to the other woman and immediately feels Juliana push into her harder. A guttural moan bubbles up from her throat as her hips move faster.

She recalls laying on a floating dock with Juliana before, telling her that she felt at fault for sex not being what she had expected. But this was so beyond her expectations. At least, now she felt confident that she wasn’t broken. She was discovering that she was actually quite the opposite. With Juliana, she felt she had the opportunity to make up for every other experience that let her down in the past. Everything else was now erased except the feeling of Juliana inside her.

Valentina knows it won’t be long before she’s trembling and clutching at the other woman. She’s powerless to do anything but keep moving. She opens her eyes, staring down at her. She feels Juliana’s lashes flutter open, and then their eyes connect. The intensity of the moment builds and builds, threatening to spill over. Valentina’s short, soft whimpers roll across Juliana’s ears. She watches in awe as the other woman’s face contorts as ripples of pleasure flow through her. Valentina’s body clinches tightly and pulses in waves on Juliana’s fingers.

The women shudder through their movements, and their mutual motion eventually crawls to a stop. They’re both breathing hard, as Juliana removes her hand from Valentina’s shorts. Valentina immediately collapses down on her and kisses Juliana thoroughly. Her tongue swiping at the roof of Juliana’s mouth and then tangling together with the other woman’s.

Eventually, their kisses start to morph into soft pecks. Valentina’s plump lips tentatively pushing and pulling, as Juliana reaches up to brush Valentina’s hair back from her face. Some small strands stick to the beads of sweat that had gathered on Valentina’s neck and forehead.

“We’re getting good at this, huh?” Juliana asks, with a small smile.

The other woman lets out a huff. She nods in agreement.

“We should keep practicing, though,” Valentina says with a smirk, her breaths still a little ragged. “Cause there will be revenge.”

Juliana has a teasing glint in her eye. “I look forward to it.”

Valentina stares at her knowingly. When they had said these same words to each other before, floating in the water in shadow of their kayak, it was the first time Valentina had thought about kissing Juliana. It was a very fleeting moment and easily dismissible, but now she regrets not always having her lips on the other woman. Valentina leans down and gives her a soft kiss. 

“Juliana.”

The sound of Lupita’s voice feels like a shot through her chest. Juliana looks over immediately at the doorway to see her mother standing there with an equally shocked and mortified expression.

Valentina crawls off of Juliana as quickly as she can. She pulls the bedspread up covering her bra-clad chest. Juliana looks back at her and then returns her eyes to her mother. She glances around, spotting Valentina’s balled up shirt on the floor. She scoops it up and hands it to her. Juliana can’t begin to process how grateful she is that they are both mostly dressed and that her mother hadn’t walked in just ten minutes before.

“What is this?” Lupe asks, the anger evident in her voice.

Juliana stands up and stares back at her intensely. She doesn’t know where to begin.

“You’ve been lying to me,” her mother continues, shaking her head. Lupe watches Juliana for a moment and then her eyes drift over to Valentina. “What have you done to my daughter?”

Juliana glances back as Valentina moves to stand behind her. Her eyes are locked to Lupita.

“Mom, what is wrong with you? She didn’t do anything to me.”

“I’m your mother and I know that you never have done anything wrong.”

“This isn’t wrong,” Juliana counters, and Lupe immediately shakes her head in disagreement. She moves closer to them, her chest rising and falling with deep breaths. Juliana knew her mother was very traditional. That it might take some time for her to understand this. But she didn’t expect her to be filled with such clear disgust and anger.

“There’s nothing wrong with this,” Juliana explains, “This love is the most beautiful thing that I have ever felt in my whole life.”

“What love? She took advantage of you,” Lupe states, nodding back towards Valentina as she inches closer.

Juliana rolls her eyes. She holds her hands out in front of her halting her mother’s progress towards them. Her jaw clinches in annoyance.

“She didn’t take advantage of me.”

“Of course she did!” Lupe yells, as she motions wildly. She sets her eyes on Valentina. “You need to leave.”

Valentina feels the tears start to well in her eyes. She doesn’t want to leave Juliana, but she can’t be here. Her heart is pounding out of her chest and she’s shaking uncontrollably. She didn’t expect this. She had no context for it. The second Juliana’s mother instructs her to go, she takes one last fleeting glance at Juliana and then she slips out from behind her. She walks as quickly as she can towards the front door. Everything turns into a blur as the tears begin spilling from her eyes. Suddenly, Alirio is asking her if she’s ok and opening the back car door to the SUV for her. She climbs in immediately.

“Fuck,” Juliana says, watching Valentina’s car drive away as she rushes towards the front of her house. She pulls out her phone and quickly dials the other woman’s number. It rings through and goes to voicemail. She dials, again, placing the phone to her ear. She listens to it ring repeatedly.

“Don’t even think that I’m going to let you ruin your life,” she hears her mother say behind her. Juliana turns around to find Lupe standing close. “You let this girl dazzle you with her money.”

Juliana rolls her eyes, again. She shakes her head and lets out a frustrated laugh.

“You know I’m not an idiot, right? I’m not dazzled by anyone’s money.” Juliana closes her eyes and takes a deep calming breath. She opens them and looks directly at Lupe. “I’m in love with Valentina, and that is not going to change because you said so.”

In turn, Lupe’s eyes are stern and she bristles at her daughter’s words.

“Val!” Juliana says, excited that the other woman finally answered. “Please, come back. I have to talk to you. Please, come pick me up.”

There’s a moment of pause. Lupe stares at her daughter. Then Juliana hears Valentina agree to return and an overwhelming sense of relief comes over her.

“You’re not leaving with her,” Lupe states.

“I am,” Juliana pushes back. “And, do you know why? Because your psycho husband is here, and he’s going to hurt her and her family if I don’t.”

“What?” Lupe asks. Her voice nearly a whisper. “He knows where we are?”

“Yes,” Juliana answers. “Apparently, he’s always known.”

Juliana glances behind her as Valentina’s SUV pulls up in front of the house. She feels bad departing with these words, but she has no choice. She lets out the small breath she’d been holding and then turns away, leaving her mother behind her on their doorstep.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there she blows. I'm exhausted and going to go to sleep now. I can't wait to wake up and reread this and be like "omg. There's so many grammatical errors. I should have waited to post in the morning." Haha. Thanks for the love and hope you enjoy ;)


	9. Chapter 9

Valentina stares out of the darkly tinted windows of the SUV. She can’t take her eyes off of Juliana’s mother standing on the porch in the distance with her hands on her hips and a distraught expression on her face. The air conditioner is on high, but she still feels overheated from the confrontation earlier. The backs of her thighs stick to the black leather beneath her. She shifts uncomfortably and then slides closer to the driver side of the bench seat, as Juliana approaches the vehicle.

Juliana climbs in quickly and shuts the door with a huff. As soon as the women lock eyes, Valentina can feel the tears start to form.

“I’m sorry, mi amor. I’m so sorry,” Valentina says, as the tears spill down her cheeks. Short erratic breaths slip out of her lungs.

Juliana’s arms are around her almost instantly, pulling her into an embrace. Her hands stroking along Valentina’s back soothingly.

“It’s ok, Val,” Juliana repeats, her tone steady and low. “It’s ok. Calm down.”

“It’s all my fault,” Valentina offers. She holds onto Juliana tightly chest to chest, her chin resting on top of the other woman’s shoulder. Her eyes blur from the tears, but she can still see Lupita staring out from the house.

Valentina feels Juliana stroking her hair and whispering in her ear. She closes her eyes and attempts to take a deep breath. Then she pulls back from Juliana and turns her head towards her driver. “Alirio, please drive. Anywhere.”

The vehicle starts to move and, immediately, the temporary sense of relief hits them both. They settle against the seat back but remain close. Their legs touching. Juliana places her palm out and Valentina quickly threads her fingers through the other woman’s, clasping their hands and resting them on her lap. They sit in silence just listening to the sounds of the SUV rolling along the narrow resort streets. Valentina focuses on her breath returning to a normal pace. She catches Alirio glancing at them repeatedly in the rear view mirror. With Lupita’s words still in her head, she can’t help but feel self conscious at being watched.

“Señorita,” her driver finally says, somewhat timidly. “Would you mind if I made a short stop?”

“Of course not,” she answers quickly.

Valentina looks over at Juliana, who doesn’t seem concerned at all with Alirio’s behavior or the change in plans. Juliana can see the worry in the other woman’s eyes. She shakes her head ever so slightly, telling Valentina with her eyes that she thinks it’s ok. They pull into a parking spot just outside a small grocery store near the town center. Alirio leaves the vehicle running and hops out.

“I’ll just be a minute,” he says, closing the driver door softly.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know why we’re here,” Valentina says, turning her body towards Juliana.

“Val,” Juliana responds with a flat tone. “First, please stop apologizing. You have nothing to apologize for. And, second, the man has been sitting outside my house for hours. He probably needs a bathroom break and a snack.”

Valentina lets out a breath and shakes her head with a small smile.

“I’m sorry. I’m just on edge with everything that happened.” She can see the look in Juliana’s eyes and immediately understands her misstep. Valentina gazes down at their joined hands. “And now I’m apologizing, again, after you told me to stop.”

“Hey,” Juliana says. She reaches up and pushes strands of Valentina’s hair back that have fallen forward around her face. Juliana’s hand slips down to her cheek and she cradles it encouraging the other woman to look back up. “You’ve done nothing wrong.”

Valentina watches Juliana’s eyes intently, struggling to find the words. The guilt hangs heavy in her chest. They stare at each other, Juliana searching her face. Valentina can tell Juliana is attempting to decode the quiet changes in her expression.

“I shouldn’t have left you,” Valentina finally whispers.

“Val, listen to me. It was best that you got out of there. My mom had no right to talk to you that way.” Juliana watches Valentina absorb her words and the tension lessen in her face. Juliana keeps her eyes locked to the other woman and continues. “This is something no one should judge. Ok? It’s something only you and I understand. And that’s fine.”

Valentina nods shyly, the heavy feeling in her chest being replaced by the warmth of Juliana’s reassurance. She leans forward with a small smile and places their foreheads gently together. They both close their eyes and settle into the embrace.

“Let’s go back to my house,” Valentina says quietly. “We can take a shower. I’ll have our cook make us dinner and bring it up to my room. We don’t have to leave or go anywhere. We can just stay in and be together.”

“That sounds amazing,” Juliana responds with a smile. She nuzzles closer to Valentina and moves her hand to other woman’s neck.

Juliana allows for the slightest pause and then, before she can explain why she can’t go to the rental house, Valentina’s mouth is on hers. Soft, open lips press into hers and she sighs in response. Valentina’s kisses always make her short of breath. Juliana melts in the embrace, shifting their bodies closer. As Valentina moves back, Juliana chases the other woman’s lips placing soft kisses at the corner of her mouth. Her hands move to lightly grip Valentina’s hips and she feels Valentina run her fingertips down the length of Juliana’s arms.

Juliana could easily spend the next few years of her life just kissing Valentina. She never tires of the sensation or the taste. Both things are unique to the woman in her arms and unmatched by any other. She presses harder, wanting to feel Valentina’s full and pliant lips under her teeth and against her tongue.

The car door clicks open and the women suddenly separate.

“Señorita, shall we head to the house?” Alirio asks from outside the vehicle. He then climbs into the driver’s seat, putting on his seatbelt.

Juliana glances over at Valentina. She’s now slumped down low in the seat next to her with the slightest blush on her cheeks. The pink flush covers her chest and neck, as well. She’s pinching gently at the bridge of her nose, trying to settle her startled nerves.

“Actually, can you please head back south on Front St?” Juliana asks quickly. “There’s a little parking lot at the end of the road that looks out over the beach.”

Valentina’s scrunched brow reveals her confusion at the change of plans.

“I was hoping we could take a walk,” Juliana explains, as she slides her hand into Valentina’s.

The other woman gives a small nod in understanding.

~~~

After some negotiation between Valentina and Alirio, the women finally make it down to the sea shore alone. Valentina promised that they wouldn’t wander too far away and that she would have her phone at the ready to answer. Thankfully, it was enough to convince their driver that he didn’t need to follow them out onto the beach.

The women stayed silent as they walked near the surf. The swells of water intermittently flowing over their bare feet. Their sandals clutched in their hands. It reminded Juliana of the walk they had taken when they first met. That walk was filled with the slightly awkward tension of being new to one another. Now, they walked hand-in-hand with a level of familiarity neither of them could have ever expected. So much had changed in just couple short weeks.

Juliana was overwhelmingly distracted. She still hadn’t quite worked out how she was going to reveal to Valentina the reason she couldn’t return to her house. But, then again, did she really need to tell her? Wouldn’t that only serve to complicate things further for Valentina?

Earlier today, when they were laying in bed with nothing separating them, Juliana was so confident that she should tell the other woman what was going on. Now that the moment had arrived, she felt her confidence slipping away. Maybe it was for the best if this was something she took on on her own. If she could stop El Chino without Valentina finding out, wouldn’t that be for the better?

Valentina could see the myriad of expressions flutter across Juliana’s face. She frowns in concern for the other woman. Juliana had been unusually quiet since they started walking. Valentina had easily acquiesced to Juliana’s request in the car before, but she was expecting some form of explanation once they were alone.

“Juls, what’s going on?” Valentina asks.

She tugs on Juliana’s hand causing the other woman to stop and turn towards her. Valentina’s worry only grows when Juliana avoids eye contact, and she sees the hard expression form on her face. Juliana is looking out towards the water, squinting at the late afternoon sun.

“Val, I don’t know if we should continue with this.”

“With what?”

“With us being together,” Juliana states, as she turns back. Her eyes finally meeting Valentina’s.

Valentina winces and briefly looks away. She can’t believe they’re back here, again. She uses her hold on Juliana’s hand to pull her closer. Her gaze locked intently on the other woman. “I’m willing to give up whatever I have to, so I can be with you,” Valentina states firmly. She starting to be at a loss for ways to make that any clearer.

“No,” Juliana counters.

“No?”

“No,” Juliana repeats. She releases Valentina’s hand and moves away from her. Juliana looks down, digging her toes into the wet sand in frustration. “You don’t even know how long you’ll be here.”

“I already told you it doesn’t matter!”

“It does matter, Val.”

“I don’t understand why you’re saying this,” Valentina replies in an exacerbated tone.

“I don’t want to affect your life!”

“My life is already affected, Juliana!”

Valentina hears the emotional strain in her own voice and breaks their stare. She can feel the tears glistening in her eyes. Why must they return to this argument? She thought they were passed this. She shakes her head and lowers her voice.

“If this is about your mom, I understand. She’s your only family,” Valentina says, placing her hand softly on Juliana’s shoulder. “We can figure this out.”

“Its not about her,” Juliana responds, biting at the inside of her cheek.

“Will you please just tell me what this is really about then?”

“I don’t want to get you in trouble, Val.”

“Just let yourself be loved, Juliana. Please!”

Juliana wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but it wasn’t this. Valentina had always been so patient with her. She had always let her come to terms with things on her own time. This was new, but not necessarily unwelcome. Juliana was fighting the tide to her own dismay. This was her last attempt to free Valentina from this mess. For better or worse, her life had always been only for her to bear. She learned early on that it was for the best if she just took care of herself. Her mother already had enough to deal with. She never wanted to be a burden to anyone. In many ways, she had grown to believe that this was hers to handle alone. She didn’t ask for this life. There was no reason to make anyone else suffer the consequences of it.

But, now, there was this woman, with a defiant look in her beautiful eyes, standing in front of Juliana wanting nothing more than to be part of it. She couldn’t pretend she was alone anymore—not with Valentina’s insistence. She couldn’t look away.

Juliana lets out a deep breath and clutches onto Valentina’s wrist. She pulls them up the beach, leading them towards a large piece of drift wood. Long, leafy branches from a nearby tree hang over the spot giving it a little shade and privacy. Once they arrive, she motions for Valentina to have a seat. Valentina quietly sits down on the worn, fallen tree trunk. She places her hands in her lap and looks up at Juliana. The woman is pacing in front of her as she bites at the tip of her thumb. Valentina opens her mouth to speak when Juliana starts.

“Remember when I told you that my dad is not a good guy?” Juliana asks. Her eyes are large and clouded with a look of panic.

Valentina wants to hold her in response but, in the moment, she seems untouchable. Juliana rubs at the back of her neck and stares down at the other woman in question. Valentina gives her a simple nod, encouraging her to continue. “Well, he’s a hitman for the narcos.”

“Oh my god,” Valentina responds in surprise. “I’m so sorry.”

Juliana doesn’t intend to dismiss Valentina’s reaction, but she feels as though she can’t stop if she’s going to get this all out. She watches her friend for a moment and then takes a deep breath.

“He has always been kind of… in and out of our lives,” Juliana continues, wringing her hands. “As I got older, I understood more. His ‘co-workers’ were starting to be around more. My mom vowed as soon as I graduated that she would get us out of there. We didn’t have a lot of options. We came here. And, for a while, it was better.”

Juliana can feel the other woman’s eyes on her as she listens intently. She kneels down on both knees in the sand in front of Valentina and takes the other woman’s hands in her own. She searches Valentina’s face for any sign that she’s going to bolt.

“He’s here now,” Juliana states. “He confronted me last night after your father’s birthday party.”

Valentina’s hands slip from her grip and she brings them up to cradle Juliana’s face. She opens her mouth to speak and then shuts it immediately, without a sound. Juliana sees the storm churning behind Valentina’s eyes. Her sudden sense of urgency obvious in her movements.

“We’ll get you out of here,” Valentina replies. “Whatever it takes. We’ll move you and your mother, again.”

“Wait, wait.”

Juliana looks down. Valentina’s hands slide to her shoulders. There was no easy way to say this. She looks up meeting Valentina’s eyes with her own. The seconds feel long and heavy between them.

“He confronted me last night… in your house,” Juliana explains.

“What?” Valentina immediately asks. Her voice just above a whisper.

“He told me to stay out of his way or you and your family would get hurt.” Juliana watches Valentina closely. The other woman’s eyes are shifting as she struggles to make sense of this news. She can see Valentina’s chest rise and fall with each deepening breath.

“I don’t know for sure, but I believe he showed up with your new security detail,” Juliana states, biting at her lip.

“What does he want?”

“No sé,” Juliana responds, letting out a short breath. “I’ve been trying to figure that out. I think they’re waiting on something, though. If this was just a hit, it would have happened. He’s been more than close enough to pull it off already.”

Juliana watches the scared expression consume Valentina’s face. She forgets that all of this had, unfortunately, become normal life for her. Her words had to be terrifying to the other woman, and Juliana instantly regrets them.

“I didn’t mean…” she starts to say and then gives up. Juliana moves up to sit next to Valentina. She places her arm around the other woman’s shoulders. Valentina moves towards her, sliding her forehead into the crook of Juliana’s neck. She holds her for a moment, adjusting her chin against Valentina’s temple.

“So what do we do?” Valentina asks softly. “I can’t just sit here knowing my family is in trouble.”

“I need to figure out if he’s working alone.”

“We,” Valentina responds.

“Que?”

“ _We_ need to figure out if he’s working alone,” Valentina explains. She pulls back so she can look Juliana in the eyes. “This is the both of us now.”

“Val, I can’t let you get even more tangled up in this,” Juliana argues.

“Basta,” Valentina begs. “No me provoques.” She runs her hand up through her hair and juts her chin at the other woman. Her posture threatens, but her eyes shine with a playfulness. “My family is one of the richest in Mexico. Do you really think I’ve never been through a kidnapping or two?”

Juliana fights a small smile. She doesn’t know if Valentina is joking or not, but she realizes it doesn’t really matter. The other woman is right. They have a better shot at getting out of this alive if she helps. El Chino would assume that Juliana would do everything in her power to not reveal what was going on to Valentina. If not just for her martyr inclinations, but because he made her believe it would put her friend in even more danger. As absent and disconnected as her father was, he always had been fantastic at manipulating people. He knew exactly how to scare Juliana. And, he had succeeded. But what he didn’tknow, what he truly didn’t expect, was Valentina.

~~~

The women stretch out their time on the beach for as long as they can. As the sun starts to dip down into the horizon, they can no longer fight the reality that they have to return.

Juliana had shared an old photo of her father on her phone, and Valentina immediately recognized the man. She wasn’t anxious to part ways with Juliana, but she was anxious to get back to her family, nervous that something may have already happened in her absence.

The pair sat as close as possible to each other in the back seat of the SUV for the short ride to Juliana’s casita. They were both resting against the back of the seat with Valentina’s head lying on Juliana’s shoulder. Juliana hears Valentina let out a small yawn next to her. Valentina covers her mouth and adjusts, settling in tighter against the other woman. When the vehicle pulls to a stop, Valentina grips onto Juliana’s bicep.

“I don’t want you to go,” she whispers.

Juliana pouts in response. She didn’t want to leave, either. She wants all of this to be over with. She wants her father not to be terrible. She wants her mother to accept this enormous new love she feels without judgement. She wants Valentina to never leave. This whole situation was riddled with so many complications. Juliana usually avoided this type of thing by denying herself the things that she wanted. She was used to being without. But, try as she might, Valentina seemed to be the one thing she could not withhold from herself.

“Promise me if anything at all happens you’ll call me immediately,” Juliana says quietly.

“I promise.”

Valentina holds out her pinky finger and Juliana links it with her own. She looks at their joined hands and smiles in response. Juliana shifts her fingers, playing lightly with Valentina’s. The contact, no matter how minor, giving her a sense of calm that she desperately needs right now. Everything about Valentina is soothing. For a second, Juliana flirts with the idea of throwing caution to the wind and spending the night with Valentina. She would give anything right now to be tangled up in Valentina’s sheets with the other woman in her arms. She looks over at her lovingly. Valentina’s head is still resting back against the seat. She’s staring at Juliana with a seriousness that renders them both still.

“Te amo,” Valentina says. The emotion evident in her small voice.

Juliana takes a deep breath, staring back at her adoringly. The world around them fades away.

“I love you, too.”

As soon as the words leave her mouth, Juliana pushes forward pressing her lips to Valentina’s. Valentina grips onto her neck pulling her in deeper. Unlike their other kisses, this one doesn’t escalate rapidly. They just sit in the embrace, absorbing the feel of each other. Like they’re taking the time to commit to memory the curve and softness of each others lips on their own. Juliana eventually pulls back believing that if she doesn’t now, she won’t be able to at all.

“Juls,” Valentina whispers, as the other woman pulls away. The name escaping her throat in a small whimpering breath.

“I know,” Juliana responds. “Tomorrow.” She swallows deeply. “After work, we’ll meet up and figure this all out.”

Juliana smiles shyly. Her eyes settle on Valentina’s lips. She moves away reluctantly and slips out the car door to head back to her house.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know we're all missing Maca & Barbara together, but I'm also curious about what happened Barbara's bunny. 
> 
> Thanks for all the fun conversation/comments! They really do make my day. Hope you enjoyed ;)
> 
> You can find me on tumblr @kristonica


	10. Chapter 10

Juliana’s thoughts drift in, taking shape slowly, forming fully and then dissipating quickly as her brain starts to make sense of her surroundings. She awoke in a mixed state. Her head is groggy from not nearly enough hours of rest, but her body buzzes in anticipation. So much has happened in the last thirty-six hours. She still struggles to make sense of it all.

From the feeling of Valentina’s lips on hers as their feet dangled in the warm water of the pool to her father threatening her in the shadows just outside the Carvajal’s resort home. From the morning she spent tangled up in anger and fear to the afternoon she spent on her bed intertwined with every inch of Valentina. From the overwhelming panic of being suddenly and unexpectedly outed to her mom to the quiet confessions of love she shared with Valentina in the backseat. The moments held an individual clarity, but the timeline was a blur.

She had nearly lost Valentina. She wasn’t sure if she had lost her mother. But, what she did know for sure, was that she had lost her virginity.

How could so much change in such a brief amount of time? It seemed impossible. If it hadn’t happened to her firsthand, she’s not sure if she’d believe it. And, yet, she had a deep suspicion that she was now only suspended in the eye of the storm. Growing up in Corpus Christi, she had experienced many hurricanes and this moment held that familiarity. She knew it would only be a matter of time before the eery, calm feeling that surrounded her would soon give way to the other side of the storm.

Juliana reaches out towards her nightstand to retrieve her phone. She pulls it close to her face and slowly pries her eyes open. The blurry numbers on her screen come into focus. It’s still a few minutes before her alarm is set to go off. She turns her head, burying her face further into her pillow and taking in Valentina’s scent that still lingers on her sheets. She lets out a small sigh of contentment at the memories it easily conjures. She reaches out gliding her hand across the mattress wishing it was Valentina’s soft skin under her fingertips.

As she breathes in deeper, her nostrils take in another scent. The aroma of fresh coffee brewing is drifting through the air. It’s odd for her mom to be up earlier than her, given her work schedule. Maybe she wants to talk. Juliana had managed to avoid her last night when she returned home. She had taken a quick shower, grabbed a snack, and made it to her room without a confrontation. Maybe after a solid night of sleep, her mother has had a change of heart. Juliana wasn’t one to put too much stock into hope, but she figured if she was ever to, now would be the time.

She turns off the alarm on her phone and places it back down. The young woman kicks at the sheets removing them from her body and sits up, stretching her arms up over her head as she rolls her shoulders. She gets up slowly and shuffles towards her bedroom door, opening it just enough to slip out into the hallway.

As she approaches the living room, she sees her mother sitting on the couch. Lupita’s head is turned away, looking towards their kitchen. The floorboards creak beneath Juliana’s feet and her mom turns to look at her. Juliana immediately feels the dread settle deep in her stomach as she take’s in her mother’s face.

Something isn’t right.

Juliana stays still, hearing male voices talking quietly in the kitchen. She glances out the front window to see an unfamiliar man smoking on their porch. She turns back when the male voices start to sound louder. Juliana watches her father step out from behind the small wall that divides the kitchen and the living room. He’s listening intently to the man standing beside him. As their eyes meet, El Chino stops and his expression falls. The man beside him notices the change in demeanor and looks over in her direction. A slow smirk spreads across Alacrán’s face as he spots Juliana.

“Well, look who finally decided to wake up,” he says, placing his hands on his hips.

Juliana scans his frame, immediately noticing the leather dual gun holster that is strapped across his back and shoulders. Alacrán shifts his weight and the thick handles of his handguns bounce once lightly against his ribs.

“It’s a shame that I travel all this way, and I have to make my own coffee,” Alacrán says with a tut, as he approaches her. He circles slowly behind her, his leering gaze drifting down her backside. “Juliana, it’s always a pleasure to see you.”

Juliana huffs in response. Her messy hair hangs down around her face and she reaches up to run a hand through it.

“I’m happy to show you the door, in case you’ve already forgotten where it is,” she responds curtly.

Alacrán smiles widely in a response. He licks his lips. “I like it when they have a little fight in them,” he whispers in her ear, as he moves around to stand in front of her, again.

He motions for Juliana to sit. She stays frozen in place for a moment. At the raise of Alacrán’s eyebrow, she purses her lips and takes a reluctant seat next to her mother. She sits perched on the edge of the couch cushion, not willing to relax in his presence.

“Why are you here?” Juliana asks, growing impatient with every passing second.

“Your father gave me no choice,” Alacrán responds. He reaches up running the palm of his hand across his stubbled chin. “Things were moving a little slow for my liking, so I came down here to finish the job.”

Him and El Chino lock eyes for a moment. Alacrán sits down in the armchair next to the couch. He settles forward, resting his forearms on his thighs as he moves his face closer staring intently at Juliana. “But what I’m really excited about is now we finally get the chance to work together.”

“I will never work for you,” Juliana states matter of factly, sitting back and crossing her arms.

“That’s the thing, mi hermosa chica,” he replies, tapping her knee. “You will.”

“Alacrán.”

El Chino’s voice is low and rough as he calls his boss’ name. He nods to his side, motioning for the other man to step outside with him. Alacrán gets up from his position reluctantly. His eyes stay fixed on Juliana as he crosses the narrow living room to join El Chino. The men exit onto the front porch, leaving the door slightly ajar. Juliana hears them in discussion with the third man she saw outside earlier, but she can’t quite make out the words. She closes her eyes, attempting to focus on their voices in hopes of learning anything that will help.

“I can’t believe this,” she hears Lupe whisper. “This never would have happened if you didn’t get mixed up with that girl.”

“You can’t seriously be blaming that right now,” Juliana says, as she opens her eyes and looks at her mother.

“What the hell did I do wrong? Where did I fail?” her mother asks, her voice rising a little in anger.

_Besides marrying a hitman?_ Juliana thinks to herself and then takes a deep breath. She stares at her mother for a moment in disbelief. How could she still be hung up on this when their lives are literally in peril?

“Look, Mom. This isn’t about you, okay? It isn’t anyone’s fault. I didn’t know that I was going to fall in love with a woman, either.”

Lupe stares at her wide eyed and shakes her head. “You don’t know what you are saying.”

“I do know what I’m saying,” Juliana counters. “I’ve never fallen in love with anyone. And it turns out that the first person I fall in love with happens to be a woman. So what! Can’t you understand that?”

“No,” Lupe answers quickly.

They stare at each other caught in the equally passionate stubbornness that runs through both of their veins. Juliana was at a loss on what to do about this. Her problems were already stacked insurmountably high and growing in number. She wasn’t backing down, though. She’d leave if she had to.

Alacrán’s laugh breaks their locked eyes, and they look up at the same time to find him standing just in front of them.

“I see like father, like daughter,” he states with a wink. He looks up towards the door. “Chino! You didn’t tell me that Juliana was sleeping with the girl. This is even better!”

Juliana rubs at her temple as she rests her head in her hand. How could this get any worse?

“I always tell Chino the more men you have on the inside, the better.” Alacrán sits down in the chair he was in previously. He rubs at the armrests as he leans back looking very satisfied with himself. “Perdón. That’s a bit sexist of me. It doesn’t hurt to have a woman on the inside, either.”

“I told you I’m not helping you.”

“Oh, yes you are,” he replies quickly to Juliana’s words. “Cause if you don’t, there will be consequences.”

The click of a hammer being cocked breaks the staring contest between the two. Juliana looks up to see the man from the porch holding a gun close to Lupe’s head. She glances over at her father who’s standing in the corner of the room. His stern face is not responding at all to the sight. Her mother lets out a small gasp as she begins to shake with fear.

Alacrán clears his throat, drawing everyone’s attention to him. His eyes narrow in on Juliana as he tilts his head to the side.

“Now, why don’t you go get your phone? We have some calls to make.”

~~~

Valentina approaches the dining room with her arms stretched in the air and a long yawn. She rubs at her face and then places her hands on the back of one of the tall chairs, pulling it away from the table. The heavy wooden legs slide against the tile letting out a deep sound that echos off the high ceilings. Her brother glances back at her, momentarily turning his attention away from his plate.

“Buenas dias,” he says softly.

“Morning,” she replies, touching his shoulder and then sitting beside him. “Why are you up so early?”

Guille only shrugs in response and then asks, “you?”

“Couldn’t sleep,” Valentina admits quickly.

She was too excited, too nervous. _Maybe too in love?_ She smiles at the thought. Feeling the blush creeping up on her cheeks, she quickly drops her giddy expression before Guille notices.

“Dad and Eva already finished their breakfast,” he offers.

Valentina scans the display of options spread out on the table in front of her, eventually reaching out and grabbing the cereal. The siblings sit in silence as she goes about preparing her breakfast. She takes a bite, the crunching sound resounding in her ears.

Valentina catches some motion out of the corner of her eye. A security guard walks through the great room and into the hall. It’s a very standard occurrence, but now it holds such a different weight. She eyes him closely, quickly identifying that it’s not the man she’s on the lookout for. She didn’t see Juliana’s father when she returned last night, and she hadn’t seen him yet today. She knew it wasn’t off limits, but her bedroom felt like the only safe place in the house at the moment. Any time she was outside of that space, she couldn’t stop herself from worrying that he would be there.

Valentina was torn. She wanted to just confront El Chino and have it be over and done with. How dare he threaten Juliana? How dare he threaten her family?

“Ah!” she exclaims suddenly, startled by the sudden poke on her side. Valentina turns towards Guille with a sneer. He shakes his head lightly.

“What is going on with you?” he asks, eyeing her curiously.

“Nothing,” she responds. She shovels another spoonful of cereal into her mouth and glances back over at him.

His expression very clearly displays that he’s not buying her response.

“You’re so jumpy this morning.”

Valentina had historically never been a very good liar. Or, really any good at hiding things in general. She recalled as a child attempting to play hide and seek with her siblings. Even though she was tiny and could fit almost anywhere, she was always the first one to be found. They teased her about it relentlessly. She quickly surmised now that there was no point in hiding this from Guille.

“I need to tell you something,” she whispers.

Guille raises his eyebrows.

“Not here,” she continues. Valentina looks around them, checking if they’re being watched. She motions towards her food, silently communicating that she’s going to finish her breakfast first. He nods his head in understanding and settles back in his chair.

Guille spent the rest of breakfast thumbing through his phone and occasionally impatiently sighing in his sister’s direction. As soon as Valentina was ready, she silently led her brother out to the patio taking a seat on the lounges next to the pool. It was close to the spot Juliana and her had sat the other night with their feet in the water. A small smile forms on her lips as Valentina recalls what had happened there.

Valentina glances over at Guille briefly. She’s not sure exactly where to start, but she knows in order to explain the situation fully that her brother needs the context. And, context means telling him everything. Valentina feels her heart start to race. She closes her eyes and bites at her lip. _Everything_ seems like a lot to share at this moment. She wasn’t ready. But, time was not on her side. She didn’t have the luxury of wallowing in her fear of his possible judgement.

“Relax,” she hears her brother say softly. He reaches out to steady Valentina’s shaking hands. “Just tell me what happened.”

Valentina takes an unsteady breath and nods her head.

“Sorry. I’m a little nervous because I haven’t told anyone yet.”

“But everything is ok?” he asks.

“It’s just,” she says and then her voice falters.

“You’re scaring me, Vale.”

“If it’s scaring you, you can only imagine how I feel.”

Valentina says the words in a rush and then breaks her eye contact with him, looking down at her hands. This was it.

“Hey,” Guille responds. He reaches out again, bringing her gaze back up. “You can trust me. You know that?”

She nods quickly in response. His warm expression settling her nerves a little.

“I’m in love…” Valentina finally reveals, her voice barely a whisper. Guille stares at her, a little perplexed by the confession. He lifts his eyebrow. “With a girl,” she says, completing her statement.

There’s a moment of pause; Guille’s blank face not giving Valentina any indication of his reaction.

“You’re in love with a girl?” he states more than questions.

“I mean, I think so. I mean, I’m pretty sure I am.”

“But why are you crying?” Guille asks. His heart clinches, as he watches the tears start to stream down his sister’s cheeks. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. I thought you were going to tell me something… actually serious.”

Valentina lets out a small huff, wiping at her face. The relief at his response washes over her. And, then as soon as it comes, it disappears in overwhelming doubt.

“I don’t know what people are going to say when they hear that—“ Valentina states, shaking her head. “Mom. I mean, if she was alive, what would mom say? Or dad. Or Eva! Can you imagine what Eva will be like?”

“No, no. Listen to me, Vale,” Guille says, moving over to her lounge. He sits next to her wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “It should not matter to you what people are going to say. What matters here is you. Your feelings.”

Valentina leans in to him. She feels her chest shaking as the tears continue to fall. Her brother rubs her arm reassuringly. He stays silent for a moment, just sitting with her while he waits for her to calm. As her breaths finally even out, he draws in a long one.

“So who are talking about here? Juliana?”

Valentina only nods in response.

“Yeah. You two weren’t exactly discrete the other night,” Guille comments, with a small laugh. Valentina shoves playfully at his shoulder. “What can I tell you?” he continues. “I like it, because I see you happy. That’s what matters the most to me. Not having to put up with your bad mood.”

Valentina laughs lightly as she sits up and wipes at the remaining tears in her eyes.

“There’s something else I have to tell you,” she starts.

The sudden ring of her phone pulls her attention away from him. She looks down at the screen and smiles. “Give me just a moment,” Valentina says to her brother, as she stands up and places the phone to her ear. “Juls.”

Guille can tell from her expression that the rest of this discussion will have to wait.

“Give Juliana a kiss for me,” he whispers, as he makes his way back into the house.

Valentina squints her eyes playfully and mouths “back off” at him. He laughs in response.

“What’s up, mi amor?”

~~~

As soon as the door bell chimes, Valentina is up and out of her room, making her way swiftly to the front. Her long hair slides back from her shoulders as she hops briskly down the steps. She feels her heart rate speed up at the thought of who’s just on the other side of the door. She’s been anticipating her arrival since the moment they got off the phone. In truth, it’s only been about half an hour but the wait felt like forever.

Valentina turns the handle excitedly, pulling the front door open. She locks eyes with Juliana instantly. She can’t tell if she’s going to melt on the spot or if her chest is going to burst before she can even get to that. She never in a million years imagined the simple sight of someone would make her feel so many things at once.

The seconds stretch out between them. There are no words exchanged. There is no need. The two women just stare at each other knowingly.

Juliana’s dark lashes flutter closed as she shuts her eyes slowly. She takes in a deep breath and pushes the door open a little wider.

Valentina’s gaze shifts to an object just to the left of Juliana’s head. The long silencer on a semi-automatic pistol hovers close to her right ear. A black leather glove covers the hand that holds the weapon. Valentina’s eyes scan up the extended arm until they finally meet with Alacrán’s.

Suddenly, the sound of shuffling feet prompts Valentina to turn around. Alirio is being escorted into the foyer behind her, with Juliana’s father following close to him. There’s a gun pointed at her driver’s back.

“Hola,” Alacrán states with a forced smile.

He shoves Juliana into the house and closes the door.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the wait on this chapter! I missed writing, and I missed y'all. So I'm happy to return. Hope you enjoyed :)


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: There is some mild violence towards the end of the chapter.
> 
> Also, this chapter ends on a cliffhanger. If you're into that sort of thing, happy reading! If it annoys you (as sometimes it annoys me), I'd wait to read it until the next chapter is posted.

Valentina felt paralyzed, like she was suddenly thrust neck deep in quicksand. Her limbs were immobilized and the surrounding pressure was crushing her lungs. She wills herself to focus and takes a small, unconscious step back from the front door. Then she hastily moves towards Juliana, as the younger woman is shoved into the foyer. Valentina reaches out to steady her, and they latch onto each other’s forearms as they lock eyes for a moment. She only breaks their stare to watch Alacrán as he shifts the focus of his weapon towards her.

Her eyes widen in fear. Everything feels like its moving so quickly and so slowly at the same time, as Valentina’s gaze drifts from Alacrán back to Juliana. She swallows thickly, her throat feeling constricted and dry. If she could scream for help, she would. But she knows that the only sound she could possibly muster in this moment would be thin at best.

She catches movement near her and Valentina turns to see Guille approaching from the hall. There’s a brief moment of respite before she realizes that he’s not alone. Her father and sister are entering the room behind him. And, behind them are two more security guards with guns pointed at their backs. They nod to Alacrán and instruct the trio in front to halt.

“Excellent,” Alacrán says, his lips turning up in a self-satisfied smile. “Everyone made it to the family reunion.”

“We’ve taken care of the other guard,” one of the men states.

_Juliana was right._ Valentina thought to herself as she scans the room. They had only arrived to Costa Rica with one security guard and Alirio. The two other guards that joined the detail, after the first scare, were with El Chino. Juliana’s father wasn’t working alone.

“Let’s have a seat,” Alacrán says. He motions with his gun towards the great room.

The Carvajals are led single file into the space and instructed to sit on the couch. Juliana feels herself retreating, hoping she can will herself out of this reality. She stays close to Alacrán, moving slightly behind him. Her eyes drop to floor as the family passes by. She only looks up when she senses Eva’s stare on her. She can see the flex in Eva’s jaw, as the woman shakes her head in annoyance.

“Juls, mi amor,” Alacrán says mockingly.

Juliana’s face drops into a scowl. Her gaze moves quickly from Carvajals to the man standing beside her.

“I need you to go with me to retrieve Leon’s laptop,” he continues. Alacrán turns to the captive audience on the couch. “And, let me be clear. Anyone moves a muscle, you will be shot. You won’t be killed. You’ll just be shot in a place on your body that’s very inconvenient for the continuation of a long life.” He begins to step away and then hesitates. He points his gun at Juliana. “Also, if anyone tries to be a hero, I will kill her.”

At those words, Juliana and Valentina’s eyes meet. She sees the sudden rise in panic reflected there.

“No,” Juliana says quickly. “I’m not leaving them.”

“Ay ay, Juliana,” Alacrán mumbles in annoyance, with his head tilted back. He drops his chin forward to look at her, his mouth now open slightly. He pauses as he looks back and forth between Valentina and Juliana. They are staring at each other as if no one else in the world exists. Their focus so intensely wrapped up in the slightest movement of eyes or twitch of expression. Alacrán purses his lips.

“I don’t know why you continue to think you have any choice,” Alacrán finally states. His voice sounds deeper and rougher than before.

Juliana turns to look at him just in time to see him nod towards El Chino. Her father grabs Alirio’s shoulder and pushes the driver forcibly down onto his knees, placing a gun at the back of Alirio’s head. Juliana gasps in response, raising her hand to reach out in his direction. She looks at her father and shakes her head at him pleadingly.

“Now that you understand. Let’s go.”

Alacrán motions for Juliana to walk in front of him. She glances at Valentina briefly and then begrudgingly obeys, stepping towards the long hallway just off the great room. Juliana lets out a deep breath in annoyance. She runs her hands up through her hair. Alacrán was right. She really has no choice.

Juliana had never personally been in Leon’s room before, but she recalls Valentina pointing it out when she had visited previously. Her eyes steady on the tall door at the end of the hall and she sets her legs on autopilot. She walks slowly down the corridor, glancing in the open doors as she passes. All of the bedrooms are decorated beautifully, but unfortunately seem quite sparse in items of any use to her now.

“Good job on the novia.”

Alacrán’s voice rings in her ears, as he keeps pace behind her. She can tell by the tone that he’s trying to get a rise out of her. She shakes her head slightly and continues walking, not acknowledging his words.

“You have excellent taste,” he continues. “She’s very sexy, very tender.”

Juliana stops abruptly and spins around so close she almost sends him stumbling backwards.

“Don’t you dare touch her,” she states sternly, her eyes boring into his.

“Oooh.” Alacran responds with a chuckle. His eyes light up at her change in demeanor. He’s clearly pleased with her reaction. “I see.” A small laugh bubbles up as he nods. He looks her up and down. “You know, I once had a rich girl, too.”

Juliana just glares at him in response.

“I know you think I’m just this big bad wolf, but I’ve been in love. Let me give you some advice, one Romeo to another.” She winces at his insinuation and he continues. “No matter how much that girl thinks she loves you, you’ll never be enough. Those people with their money and their status and their power. They’re different. We’re nothing to them.”

“Is that what happened to you? Some rich girl broke your heart?” Juliana asks. Alacrán only stares back. His eyes narrowing, as they stay fixed on hers. “You were never good enough for her so now you go killing and stealing to prove your worth.”

“No, no, no, niña.” he responds. His tongue clicking, as a smirk starts to form on his face. “You’ve got it all wrong. Whether you like it or not, you, with all your bravado and bullshit, are more like me than you think. We’re the same.”

Juliana shifts uncomfortably. The idea of this man comparing them flares anger in her chest.

“Your dad is a heartless idiot,” he continues. “It makes him a great sicario. But, you, hermosita… have the capacity for so much more.”

There are so many counters just at the tip of Juliana’s tongue, but she can’t decide if it even matters. Somewhere in the back of her brain, she worries that he’s right. These fears aren’t new to her. She had been fighting them all along. The longevity of her and Valentina’s relationship is a far shot at best. She had allowed the other woman to convince her that anything was possible. But even if they could get over the hurdles of distance and family drama, they still had to contend with the fact that Juliana was from a very different background.

Juliana had grown up in a world of moral ambiguity, where murder and theft were bullet points on a resume. She ignored it to the best of her ability, but how much of that had crept into her psyche? How much of it had already broken her? Valentina was so pure and wonderful and undeniably privileged. And, she was just this dark little poor mess that was forever tied to her father’s mistakes. This moment being the perfect example of that reality. And now, with it laid out so blatantly in front of her, Juliana feels the uncertainty creeping in again.

She rubs at her neck and then turns away from Alacrán. Juliana steps into Leon’s room, her eyes dancing over the furniture searching. She finally spots the laptop siting on the beside table. She walks over, slides her hand across the smooth cover, and picks it up. As she moves back into the hall, she keeps her eyes ahead refusing to look at her captor. She pauses momentarily and then pushes forward letting her shoulder roughly bump into Alacrán’s as she passes him. He briefly looks down with a close-mouthed smile and rubs his chin before turning around and following her back to the great room.

~~~

“Set it down,” Alacrán instructs, motioning with his pistol.

Juliana releases a small breath and then silently moves towards the long, glass coffee table in front of the couch. She gently places the laptop down. Leon and her eyes meet in the process. His stare has lost all of the warmth that it held the other night. Juliana briefly wonders if Valentina also has the ability to turn so cold.

A sudden clicking noise prompts Juliana to turn around. Alacrán is calling her as if he’s trying to get the attention of a dog. Juliana rolls her eyes in response and moves hesitantly towards him. He slides his free hand into his back pocket and pulls out Juliana’s phone. He extends it out towards her. She glances at the device for a moment and then crosses her arms in defiance.

“I told you,” he whispers, with a raise of his eyebrow. “We’re the same.”

Juliana plucks the phone from his palm quickly, as she bites at the inside of her cheek. He eyes her for a moment and then turns towards the couch.

“Leon,” he calls out. “I hate to make you work on your vacation, but we have a very urgent financial matter you need to tend to.” Alacrán steps closer to him, raising the gun in his direction for emphasis. “You’re going to log into your bank account and set up a wire. Then you’re going to call your private banker and clear the transfer to take place immediately. Do you understand?”

Leon glances to his left, eyeing his children from where he sits at the end of the couch. Guille is next to him, then Eva and Valentina. He looks over to the foyer where Alirio is still on his knees with El Chino behind him. One of Alacrán’s men is positioned at the opposite end of the couch near his youngest daughter. The other man is by the front door. Everyone is quiet as he surveys his surroundings.

“Juliana, I’ve texted you the account information I want the money transferred to,” Alacrán states. “Perhaps you can assist Señor Carvajal. He seems a little perplexed at the moment.”

At his words, Leon snaps out of his trance. He lets out a deep huff and opens his laptop.

“How much do you want?” Leon asks gruffly.

Juliana kneels down next to Leon. She places her hand gently on top of his. He freezes at the gesture and looks over at her. She does her best to convey with her eyes that she’s sorry, but the cold expression remains on his face. She’s sure that somewhere deep in his heart he knows she has nothing to do with this. But right now, it only appears as though she’s enabling the situation.

~~~

“Yes,” Leon answers into the speaker. Juliana holds Señor Carvajal’s cell phone in front of his face, as he sits awkwardly on the couch with both handsbehind his head. “Thank you for your quick work, Diego. This is very helpful for me since I’m out of the country.”

Juliana shifts on her feet, the weight of the phone in her extended hand causing her to waiver a little. She is having trouble maintaining her focus. Throughout this whole phone conversation, her eyes keep slipping to the end of the couch where Valentina sits. The other woman is holding up very well, considering the gun hovering so close to her head.

After Leon and Juliana had worked together to get the correct information for the wire transfer into the computer, Alacrán had insisted that Valentina’s father call the bank immediately. He made it very clear that there would be no patience for any sign of Leon signaling for help. If Alacrán interpreted one word of the conversation as problematic, he would begin eliminating heirs—starting with Valentina. He also insisted that entire family keep their hands up behind their heads to restrict any quick movement.

Juliana thought if the entire situation wasn’t absolutely frightening, it would look kind of funny. The sour and annoyed expression all of them held on their faces made her believe that Valentina wasn’t joking about her already having experienced a few hostage situations.

“Alright. You have a good day, too,” Leon states, finally ending the conversation with his banker.

Alacrán nods for Juliana to hang up the phone. She does quickly and then places it down on the coffee table.

“This is stupid!” Eva suddenly calls out. She adjusts in her seat on the couch, straightening her back as she stares down Alacrán. “The minute this is over, we’re just going to cancel the transfer. We have your information so it’s all completely trackable. I can’t believe you’re wasting our time with this.”

Alacrán slowly turns his head to the right, looking Eva directly in the eyes. He lets the silence stretch between them.

“Last time I checked,” he responds calmly. “You have to be alive to cancel a transfer.”

The implication hangs heavy in the air. His sudden very serious tone causing the color to drop from Eva’s face. He moves closer to her, a smile forming at the corner of his lips.

“Boss,” one of the guards says, distracting Alacrán from his advancement on the eldest Carvajal sibling.

Alacrán looks up to see the guard stepping closer to the large window near the front door. He pushes at the side of the curtains just enough to look out. “The policía are here,” he states plainly.

“Que?” Alacrán responds, his expression an equal mix of confusion and annoyance.

“Shit,” the guard continues. “They actually have the entire front surrounded.”

Alacrán quickly turns back towards Juliana. His chest rising and falling with deep breaths as the anxiety sets in. She doesn’t register his movement at all. She’s still standing next to Leon at the end of the couch, but her stare is trained on Valentina. In turn, Valentina is looking intensely back at her. So much seems to be transpiring between them in that moment. Juliana’s mouth twitches in the very slightest of closed-mouth smiles, but its her eyes that give her away. Alacrán sees them soften in a grateful expression, as she continues to gaze at Valentina.

“There was no tell,” Alacrán says under his breath, as he stomps towards Juliana.

He grabs her arm roughly and pulls her towards him. Juliana winces in pain and Valentina yelps in response.

“Let her go!” Valentina exclaims, as she jumps to her feet. Eva grabs her sister’s wrist, halting her attempts to move forward. “Juliana didn’t need to tell me anything! I know her. I knew something was the wrong the minute she called me.”

“Sí, princesa. We all know exactly how very _well_ you know Juliana,” Alacrán spits out.

“What?” Eva asks, glancing back and forth between them.

“I’m fucking done with this,” Alacrán states harshly. The timber of his voice reverberating off the walls. He jerks Juliana closer, bringing her face to his. Through gritted teeth, he yells, “I told you there would be consequences!”

As the words leave his mouth, Alacrán violently shoves Juliana down. She braces for impact as she hits the glass table beside her. Her forearm making direct contact, shattering the surface. Juliana groans, her eyes are shut tight. She clutches the wrist that hit the table with her other hand as she moves from her knees to sit upright on the ground. Juliana looks up through the strands of disheveled hair hanging in her face to see Alacrán pointing a gun down at her. His glare is full of fire.

“Alacrán!” El Chino yells out, walking quickly towards them.

His eyes are locked on the man. He points his gun at his boss’s head, his arm and aim very steady.

“Get your gun off me!” Alacrán instructs, glancing quickly in his direction.

“I can’t let you do this!”

Alacrán huffs in a condescending laugh. His eyes never leaving Juliana as he responds to the other man.

“Oh, so now you’re vying for father of the year?”

El Chino grits his teeth and cocks his gun in response.

Juliana’s eyes bounce back and forth between her father and Alacrán. She struggles to bring air into her lungs, as the weight of the moment crushes her chest. This was it. This was the end.

Leon shakes his head, pulling his stare from Juliana and the shattered glass on his shoes. He swallows deeply, as he glances around the room. The other two guards have taken off in the commotion. He grabs Guille’s hand to get his attention and motions for them to go. Alacrán and El Chino are too focused on each other to notice the family’s movement. Eva pushes at Valentina, urging her to stand up and start moving towards the door. As she does, her family follows quickly behind her.

They enter the foyer and Leon helps Alirio to his feet. Guille opens the front door and ushers everyone out. Only Valentina remains. She’s frozen in place watching Juliana. She believes she can save her. There has to be a way. She can’t tear her eyes away from the other woman. But Valentina’s arms and legs seemed to have abandoned her. No matter how hard she tries, she can’t force them to just move.

“Go ahead and try to pull the trigger, Chino. She’s dead either way!” Alacrán yells out.

Suddenly, Valentina feels a pair of arms wrap around her midsection and she is jerked backwards. She attempts to fight her father’s arms as he pulls her out of the front door. Her confusion builds as the police surround them in the courtyard.

Then Valentina hears the sudden deafening ring of a gunshot, and she flinches in response.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was hoping to post the big ending chapter of the story today, but this section was taking a little longer for me to finish than expected. So I decided to go ahead and put it out there for those of you that were looking forward to it. The exciting conclusion will have to wait for next chapter! As always, hope you enjoyed :)


	12. Chapter 12

_“Go ahead and try to pull the trigger, Chino. She’s dead either way!” Alacrán yells out._

_Suddenly, Valentina feels a pair of arms wrap around her midsection and she is jerked backwards. She attempts to fight her father’s arms as he pulls her out of the front door. Her confusion builds as the police surround them in the courtyard._

_Then Valentina hears the sudden deafening ring of a gunshot, and she flinches in response._

 

**1 MONTH LATER**

The wide-set wheels of a black SUV bounce once as they hit a shallow pot hole. The sudden jarring causes Guille to look up from the phone in his hand. He glances to his right, where Valentina sits on the far side of the backseat. Her steady gaze is fixed out of the window, as she appears lost in thought. The early afternoon sun occasionally casts shadows over them as they roll past the tall modern buildings in downtown Mexico City. Guille watches his sister for a moment and then lets out a small sigh. As he looks forward, his eyes meet with Alirio’s in the rear view mirror.

To say that since they had returned from Costa Rica Valentina hadn’t been the same, would be an understatement. Considering what she had shared with him while they were there, Guille expected this behavior to some extent. But he also believed in the adage of ‘time heals all wounds.’ He knew it hadn’t really been that long, but it seemed Valentina’s condition was only getting worse.

She was a level of vacant and inconsolable that rivaled the time following the passing of their mother. But this time there seemed to be a new anxiety added to it, as well. As horrible as it was, they had known with certainty that their mother was gone. With this, Valentina was left to wonder.

Everything happened so quickly that day. The minute they had been cleared by the police in the courtyard of their resort home, the family was quickly ushered to the airport, and an onto a private charter back to Mexico. Leon wanted his family out of the country immediately. Even their personal items were left behind at the house, only to be packaged for them and sent a week later. Their father had insisted that the youngest Carvajal be kept away from anything to do with the police investigation. Eva and Guille were asked to respect Leon’s wishes. The only other route to understanding what happened was blocked by a wall of their family’s attorneys.

Valentina had to feel completely isolated, if nothing else. Guille noticed that she wasn’t speaking with her friends since they had returned. He assumed that things were still off with Lucho given that the boy had not been back to the house. Although, from what he could tell, it wasn’t for him not trying. A few late night phone call yelling matches between his sister and her ex indicated that he wasn’t going quietly. Guille wondered if the breakup was what was causing the riff between Valentina and her friends, as well.

“This is good right here,” Guille says to their driver, as he leans forward in his seat.

Their SUV pulls up to the curb and comes slowly to a stop. Guille moves to unbuckle his seat belt. He looks over at Valentina expectantly. She feels his eyes on her, and she turns her head to look at him. Her arms are crossed and her jaw is flexed. A small, sympathetic smile crosses his face.

“Please,” Guille whispers to her quietly.

She stares at him for a moment and then reluctantly unbuckles her seat belt. She pulls at the door handle, opening it up fully, and stepping out onto the sidewalk.

“We’ll be back in a few.”

Guille receives an understanding nod from the driver and then he slides across the backseat and exits the car on Valentina’s side.

Valentina is waiting for him just outside the car. Her arms are still crossed and she’s looking down at the ground. Guille reaches out and touches her upper arm, squeezing it gently. She glances up for a moment and he nods his head to the side. With that, she falls in step beside him and they slowly make their way down the sidewalk.

The pair stroll through the city park in silence. It’s a lovely day outside and fortunately not too busy at this time. The lunch crowd that usually fills the benches and shady spots beneath trees had died down. Except for a few street vendors and the occasional people passing through, it was mostly quiet.

Guille shoves his hands in his pockets and looks over at Valentina as they continue their walk.

“You ok, Vale?” he asks, already knowing the answer.

“Yes,” she responds quickly. A few seconds pass and then she wipes at the tears on her cheeks. “Not really.” Valentina halts suddenly and starts to turn back. Her confusion is written clearly on her face and she waivers in her decision. “I don’t know if I can do this. Sorry.”

“Hey, hey,” Guille says softly. “It’s just a walk.”

“I know,” she replies, letting out a deep shaky breath. She runs her hand up through her hair and looks away. “Everything just feels so hard, you know?”

He nods lightly in response, watching her closely.

“I get it,” he states. “But this is literally like taking one step at a time.”

Valentina offers a small watery laugh in response. She purses her lips in consideration, and then they resume walking slowly in their original direction.

“I thought it would be good to get out of the house. That place is way too intense these days.” Guille glances back over at his sister to see if his words are even registering. He continues, “Eva has somehow become worse. I didn’t think that was even humanly possible.”

Valentina’s head very slightly bobs up and down, as she nods in agreement. Her distant stare gives away the fact that she’s still quite distracted.

Guille temporarily abandons the idea of chatting and decides that Valentina walking outside is probably a significant enough effort for the moment. After a few blocks, he motions towards a bench and the siblings take a seat next to each other. They look out at the park in front of them. The crisscrossed sidewalks creating an x-like pattern of gray cement strips across the green grass. Valentina is sitting forward with her forearms resting against her thighs. She glances back over her shoulder at her brother. He’s leaned back with his arm up on the bench seat behind her.

“So is this like an intervention?” Valentina asks.

Guille smiles a closed-mouthed smile and continues to look forward.

“Sort of,” he replies.

“Is dad going to put me on drugs?”

“I don’t know. Do you want some?”

Valentina watches him for a moment. “No sé,” she says. Her words come out on a long breath.

“I’m just worried about you,” Guille states. “I want to help.”

“It’s just…” Valentina starts. Her thoughts pause, as she moves to lean back against the bench. She rubs her thumb in the palm of her other hand and bites at the inside of her cheek. She doesn’t know quite how to articulate this without breaking into tears. She swallows thickly. “I just want to know that she’s ok.”

Guille and Valentina lock eyes. He can offer her all the sympathy in the world, but he knows there’s no words that will make this any better. He communicates what he can with his presence, even if it’s just a recognition that this pain she’s going through is very real. Even if it’s just a simple validation of her suffering. She’s not alone no matter how lonely it gets.

He watches her eyes start to fill with tears. Guille turns to look back out in front of them. A brief moment passes and then a small smile forms on his lips. He places his hand on his sister’s back. At his touch, she turns her head to see what he’s staring at so intently.

Through her tears, she notices a blurry person moving towards them in the distance. As the person gets closer, they become decidedly more familiar.

“Remember,” Guille whispers in Valentina’s ear. “I had nothing to do with this.”

He gives her a quick peck on the temple and then stands up. He waves briefly to the approaching person, shoves his hands in his pockets, and slowly starts to walk down the sidewalk. Guille glances back for a moment to see Juliana stop in front of the bench, and then he continues down the path to give them some privacy.

~~~

Valentina looks up in awe, her mouth falling slightly open but no words form. She shakes her head to try to validate that she’s not hallucinating. Juliana only smiles wider in response. The two women stare openly at each other, absorbing as much of the sight as they can.

“You’re here,” Valentina barely whispers.

The way Valentina is staring up at her in bleary-eyed wonder strikes a memory and Juliana responds in kind.

“You’re sitting on my shoes.”

Valentina looks immediately perplexed and checks the seat beneath her. Half way through the motion she mentally kicks herself and looks up quickly at Juliana, again. The smirk on the other woman’s face is the most welcome sight in the world. Valentina jumps to her feet and launches forward wrapping her arms around Juliana’s shoulders. In response, Juliana steps back with one leg to gain her balance to keep them from toppling over.

They both relax into the embrace, holding each other as tightly as possible. Juliana rests her chin on Valentina’s shoulder and closes her eyes, as Valentina lets her lips brush against the other woman’s neck. Their bodies are flush from shoulders to thighs, and they revel in the warmth of every inch that they connect.

Valentina is torn. She wants to look at Juliana, but she doesn’t want to let her go. She wonders briefly if it’s physically possible for them to get in the car and to her house without breaking this embrace. Holding her feels like the longest drink of water to her very parched soul.

Valentina eventually releases her grip just enough to move her upper body back. One of Juliana’s arms is still wrapped around her waist. Valentina cups Juliana’s face with both hands and stares into her eyes. She moves her hands down to the other woman’s shoulders, and then slides them down her arms. When her fingertips brush the rough surface of the cast on Juliana’s left forearm, Valentina looks down.

“Oh my god. Are you ok?” Valentina asks in a gasp. “We can sit!”

Valentina immediately pulls Juliana to the bench by her uninjured arm. She settles very close to the other woman inspecting her head to toe. Juliana laughs lightly in response, batting at Valentina’s hands.

“I’m fine, Val. Neta,” she replies, a smile on her lips at the other woman’s antics. “It’s just a broken arm. I can still stand and walk and breathe and everything. I swear.”

Valentina’s eyes dance around Juliana’s face and then down to her injured arm. She runs her palm gently across the cast and then onto Juliana’s fingers that extend out from the frayed plaster.

“But you’re hurt,” Valentina says. Her voice sounding fragile.

Juliana brushes a strand of Valentina’s hair back, and she looks deeply into her eyes. “I know,” she responds softly. She rests her hand against the other woman’s neck, as she absentmindedly strokes her thumb behind Valentina’s ear. “But I’m here now.”

Valentina leans into the touch and closes her eyes for a moment. She opens them slowly, her lashes fluttering as if she’s waking from a deep sleep.

Juliana looks away for a second and takes a deep breath. Valentina takes the moment to survey the other woman. Suddenly so many questions begin flooding Valentina’s brain and she feels very overwhelmed.

“I called you,” Valentina states matter of factly. There’s a pause and then she can’t stop herself. Her words come rushing out of her mouth like water breaking through a dam.

“I called you a million times. I’m sure the phone company thinks I’m insane. But you never answered. You never called me back. I was going mad. My father wouldn’t let me help you. I tried so hard, but he wouldn’t listen. No one would listen! They all heard it in the courtyard. The gunshot was so loud. They wouldn’t let me go to you. I tried. I kicked and I screamed, but they all said it was unsafe. As if that mattered to me! So I did what I could. I called you because its all I had. That was the only piece of you I had. That sequence of numbers. It was the only thing that made me sure that you were real, but you didn’t answer. You never answered.”

“Val, Val, tranquila,” Juliana finally says, her deep brown eyes making direct eye contact in concern. “Breathe. Ok?”

Valentina can feel her world start to spin. The sweat on the back of her neck collects and rolls down her spine. Juliana moves closer and Valentina lets her head drop forward onto Juliana’s shoulder. She nuzzles into her neck, gripping at the other woman’s shirt. “Just match my breathing,” she hears Juliana whisper. Valentina tries her best. She closes her eyes and takes in Juliana’s scent. She feels the rise and fall of Juliana’s chest and, through stuttered breaths, Valentina attempts to fall in sync.

Juliana wraps her arm around Valentina’s shoulders and pulls the other woman against her. She rubs gently at Valentina’s arm, while she lays soft kisses against the top of her head. This past month had no doubt been very difficult for the both of them, but hearing the fear and pain in Valentina’s voice solidifies it in a way she wasn’t sure she was quite prepared for. She pouts in response and shuts her eyes tightly, desperately fighting the tears forming in her own eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Juliana says, her lips resting against the other woman’s hair. “I’m so sorry. I wanted to call you, too.”

Juliana feels Valentina grip her tighter. Her words provide a momentary sense of relief, and they relax further into the embrace. Then Valentina pushes back and sits up in her arms. They stare intensely at each other, their measured breaths rising and falling together. The tears begin to slowly roll down Juliana’s cheeks and Valentina moves her hands up to wipe them away.

“They took my phone,” Juliana states.

“Who?”

“The police. They confiscated my phone as evidence,” she explains. Juliana’s right arm stays firmly around Valentina’s shoulders, as she awkwardly wipes at her tears with her left hand—her cast making it difficult. Valentina attempts to help her, pushing back the hair that had fallen forward in Juliana’s face.

“My father killed Alacrán.”

Valentina’s sharp intake of breath in response rings in Juliana’s ears.

“They arrested him,” she continues. “I was taken to the hospital. It took a while to get the cast on. Pretty much as soon as they were done, they sent me to the police station for questioning. They held me there for a couple days until everything finally got sorted out. But at the end of the whole ordeal, they wouldn’t give me my phone. I had no clue how to get ahold of you.”

Juliana looks down. She stares at her injured arm for a moment, picking at a loose thread on her jeans.

“Honestly, after a couple weeks, I thought it might be for the best if I didn’t,” she finishes.

Valentina’s heart clinches at Juliana’s words. It was almost too much to process at once. After everything Juliana had done for her and her family, to know that she had been treated like a criminal was equal parts painful and infuriating. Valentina felt her own inability to help the woman had no doubt made things worse. She bites at her lower lip, as she shakes her head in annoyance at herself. As much as it pained her not to know whether Juliana was alive, she couldn’t imagine how difficult going through all of that had been for the other woman. And now, Juliana was here telling her that she was starting to believe it was for the best if she just disappeared from Valentina’s life.

“What changed your mind?” Valentina asks, in a whisper.

“Your brother found me,” Juliana answers, as she looks back up at Valentina. “Well, he had some of his people find me. It took a while to figure out, but they were able to get me a plane ticket. I didn’t want him to tell you until we knew for sure. But when it became real… the idea of seeing you again… I realized I would give anything in the world for that. Even if all you did was tell me to stay away from you and your family. I just wanted so badly to see you one last time.”

The desperation in Juliana’s voice and eyes is almost enough to make Valentina fall apart. She scans Juliana’s face, feeling her heartbeat pound against her chest. Valentina raises both hands and cups either side of Juliana’s face. She steadies her gaze on the other woman’s eyes.

“This absolutely won’t be the last time,” Valentina states simply. The confidence in her words rendering Juliana still.

The smallest smile dances across Juliana’s lips and her eyes soften. Valentina nods ever so slightly in response.

“How long are you here for?”

“Just for a week,” Juliana says. “That’s the longest I would let your brother put me up for.” Valentina opens her mouth to protest, but Juliana interjects. “My plan is to move here, though. I don’t have an enormous amount of money saved, but enough to get me a place until I find a job. I feel like I’d have a better chance at going to a university here.”

Juliana watches Valentina’s eyes light up and she smiles at the other woman’s attempt at hiding a delighted squeal. The rise in energy causing Valentina to struggle to stay in her seat.

“Of course. I can help you!” Valentina says excitedly. The sudden drop of Juliana’s face causing her to lower her voice. “I mean, I’ll help get you an interview. You’ll have to get into the school entirely on your own merit. You can wash mopeds and everything. I promise I won’t influence it at all.”

Juliana maintains her serious expression and eyes Valentina closely as she leans in.

“Thank you,” she says softly.

Valentina smiles in response. With their faces so close, she’s struggling to keep her eyes off of Juliana’s mouth. She licks her lips in anticipation. Then a thought flutters across her mind that pushes her back.

“What about your mom?” Valentina asks, with concern.

Juliana takes a deep breath in response.

“I’m trying to work out a way for both of us to come here,” she explains, looking down for a moment. “But if she doesn’t want to, she has Pancho there. Plus, she’s still kind of struggling with…”

Valentina watches her pause and raises her eyebrow in question.

“With what?”

“With this whole ‘me being in love with a girl’ thing,” Juliana continues.

“You’re in love with a girl?” Valentina questions.

“Yes,” Juliana states, fighting a smile. “A specific one.”

“Still?”

Juliana shakes her head lightly at Valentina’s question. The playful look in her eyes finally pushing her into a full blown smile.

“Yes,” she answers, again. “In fact, I’m starting to feel like this might be a forever type of thing.”

Valentina feels her heartbeat pick up, as her eyes stay locked to Juliana’s. The seconds draw out slow and suspended between them. As Valentina leans forward, she realizes nothing else in the world exists to her in this moment except for Juliana. They could be on a quiet dark street next to a falling moped or near the blue glow of the underwater lights of a pool or on the small bed of a cramped casita or surrounded by the black lush interior of the backseat of an SUV. It has all never mattered to her. Juliana’s lips on hers took Valentina away from everything. 

Valentina presses forward, her mouth sliding against Juliana’s openly. Their lips tug at each others as they savor the comfort and excitement of their proximity. Juliana licks at Valentina’s lower lip and she smiles in response. She threads her fingers up through Juliana’s hair, pressing their foreheads together, staying close but breaking the kiss just barely.

“I’m never leaving you again,” Valentina whispers. She quickly pulls Juliana back into another kiss, then she releases her to take a breath. “Like ever.” Juliana captures her lips in response. “Like you’ll need a restraining order to get rid of me,” Valentina mumbles against them.

“Is this supposed to be romantic?” Juliana asks, and they both laugh lightly in response.

Valentina backs up just enough to look her in the eyes and can’t help but instantly reflect the absolute adoration that she sees. She could stare at Juliana forever.

“Never?” Juliana questions. She brings her right hand in between them and extends her pinky out towards the other woman.

Valentina hooks her pinky finger with Juliana’s and pulls them back closer.

“Promise,” she responds, as she leans back in to kiss her, again.

 

_The End_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading :)
> 
> [Read the Bonus Chapter 'The Hotel Room'](https://archiveofourown.org/works/19972240)
> 
> Come yell at me on tumblr [@kristonica](https://kristonica.tumblr.com)


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